Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

TUSOKI

1; Seven Kisses We Shared.

One

It wasn't much.

Really.

But it made an impact that would last a lifetime as he stood there, trembling in fear and disbelieve. His cheek burning with the imprint of her soft, slightly moist, lips.

In that moment, all he saw was her.

Tall enough to tower over him, terrifying enough to make him shake in his shoes with just one look. Blue eyes and blonde hair, which swayed as she turned away from him.

He stood there for the longest time, watching the spot where she'd disappeared in the sky with her companions.

Two.

It happened on a whim. He would blame the alcohol for it later.

Yes I was drunk, no I didn't mean to do it...really.

Maybe?

It brought back a distant memory yet this time there was one key difference.

This time it was him who kissed her on the cheek, sloppily and uncoordinated, but it happened no less.

Three.

Looking back, he couldn't even remember who started it. It just..happened.

One moment he was locked in a staring match with her, hands locked in a power standoff. Faces smudged with sand, clothes torn.

The next moment he found himself almost desperately grasping at her shirt while she had pinned him against the wall of Kame House.

It was so intense.

He had to hold on to her, he would have collapsed to the ground otherwise.

Their first real kiss.

And it was better than he ever could have imagined.

Four.

He felt helpless, hopeless as his tears silently fell.

Then a gentle touch, pale fingers gingerly tracing over his wet cheeks followed by soft kisses.

A quiet whisper of comfort and a familiar warmth all around him.

It's okay, I'm here.

Five

In the darkness, they surrender completely. Their hands roaming, touching, grasping at each other almost desperately. Mouths colliding, bumping teeth but not caring. It's just them in this moment of passion.

It was wet.

And messy.

But oh so good.

Six.

He has to squeeze himself to make sure this isn't a dream as he sits on the edge of the bed marveling at the tiny bundle in his wife's arms.

She's so small and fragile. Blonde hair, black eyes but no nose.

Still perfect.

A creation of love, a distant dream that turned into reality.

He has a family now, a little girl to care for and a spouse who'd made him the happiest man alive.

He laughs softly with watery eyes, leaning in and kissing his wife on the forehead.

She gives him a tired smile in return.

Seven.

She doesn't want this moment to be real, it can't be.

It's too soon.

There is so much they still have to do, to see.

Yet she knows she has to face reality.

Why? Why do you have to do this?

Why now?

But there is no answer, only silence as she gently takes his lifeless hand into hers.

She tenderly kisses his cheek.

One last time.

Chapter Text

Eighteen turned sideways, hand reaching out to the person next to her.

She trailed her fingers down Krillin's spine, careful not to wake him as she followed the slight curve, all the way down to the edge of his pajama pants, back up till between his shoulder blades

Krillin stirred but didn't wake up, instead he turned to his stomach but still facing away from her.
His skin felt warm and soft, yet a little rough in places where it bore the scars of battles he fought.

She admired those small scars, following their shape with her fingertips. She scooted closer towards his warmth, tracing and drawing different shapes all over his back.

Squares, triangles, circles.

Then letters and words until she caught herself drawing the same phrase over and over again.

'I love you.'

Eighteen smiled to herself, yes she loved him.

So dearly.

She let out a small sigh, tracing those three special little words one last time before turning away from him. She turned to her side, reaching out to the small light on the bedside table and turned it off. She didn't feel tired but she was so comfortable right now that she didn't feel like leaving the bed.

Eighteen was startled when suddenly she felt Krillin snuggle up behind her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer to him.

He tenderly nuzzled the nape of her neck, intertwining their fingers on her stomach.

“ 'Love you too.”

Chapter Text

Just a tone.

Again.

She sighed as she pushed the disconnect button on her phone.

How many times had she tried now?

Tried to get a hold of him?

She'd lost count. Maybe the number she had was wrong? It wasn't unlikely, after all it had been a very long time since she had even thought about the small man who had came and gone in her life a long time ago.

She ran her fingers through her long blue hair. No that wasn't it. Someone had answered her call one time before, she had recognized the croaky voice of the old man who owned the small pink house on that small island all the way in the middle of the ocean.

And he had told her Krillin wasn't there when she asked for him. She never revealed herself, even when he kept asking for her name so he could leave a message.

Maron reached in front of her, taking a small faded photograph from the table.

She smiled softly at the people looking up at her, they were making goofy faces at the camera. She had found it when she was cleaning up some of her clutter in the basement of her home.

It was taken in a photo booth, she remembered that day clearly.

“Come on! It'll be fun!”

“I don't know....”

“Don't be such a killjoy!”

Maron chuckled, she had practically dragged him into that booth and they had ended up having a good time.

She stood up and walked over to her window. Outside it was raining steadily, down on the busy street people were rushing by trying to get somewhere dry. Maron pocketed the picture before leaning her forehead against the cool glass.

So much had changed since that time. Including herself, at least that is what she would like think. Looking back on the person she had been and the person she was today, she cringed.

She frowned almost sadly, how much had she hurt the one person who had been totally smitten with her, who had been willing to do everything for her, just for her own selfish reasons?

Back then she hadn't bothered with thoughts like these, she just wanted to have a good time.

But now? Now that she had matured a great deal and put some things into perspective?

And it wasn't if they'd never had fun together quite the opposite.
She smiled as she thought of all the shopping trips and walks on the beach they'd shared. Krillin had always been a very gentle and caring person, he had been like a steady line in her otherwise wild and turbulent life.

He'd always treated her with such respect, protected her from harm and made sure she got everything she desired, within reason. Always made sure she felt wanted and loved.

Maron bit her lip, thinking back at some intimate moments they'd shared, how safe she had felt in his warm embrace at night.

So why had she still hooked up with others while being with him? She wasn't even sure of the answer, she just wanted to have fun. She hadn't cared much or thought much about what that could have meant to him. He never complained or asked her about her escapades. He was just happy to spend time with her, she reasoned.

Until he apparently had enough of it and broke up with her. She swallowed a small lump in her throat thinking back at that particular moment.

The sun had been setting, they'd had walked along the shoreline when he he had told her, he was setting her free. And even if it might not have shown much on the outside, she had been crushed as he walked away from her.

“Just so you know, I would have said yes”

She had said softly, referring to marrying him, before walking away. At one point she could have sworn that he had called her name but she had been distracted by a handsome man in a fancy sport scar who had whisked her away.

After that, she had just kind of forgotten about him until she found the picture the other day.

Maron wrapped her arms around herself. She had messed up, big time. She wondered if he would be able to forgive her for treating him like she did? Would he even want to talk to her if she finally did manage to get a hold of him?

She wouldn't blame him if he didn't.

She turned back to the table, making up her mind. She would try on more time and if he didn't answer, then that would be it. She wouldn't try again.

She felt her heart skip a beat when she heard a click on the other side.

“Hello?”

Maron's eyes widened, this wasn't Krillin, in fact it wasn't a man at all.

“Hello, someone there?”

She frowned slightly, who was this woman and what was she doing at Kame house?

Was it one of his friends, the ladies she had met so long ago? But this voice sounded so different, she did not recognize it.

“Who is it, babe?”

Maron almost gasped, she recognized that voice. It was him. She hastily covered her mouth with her hand.

“I don't know, they're not talking.” The unknown voice said.

“Just hang up, probably just some kids trying to prank call or something.”

There was a louder click and then the line went dead.

Maron stood there for the longest time, just staring at her phone screen, trying to get her thoughts together.

Hearing his voice had been such a shock, especially after trying to get a hold of him for so long. But who was the woman? She had heard him call her babe, so was she his girlfriend? Wife?

Maron didn't know. She took the photograph from her pocket. She swallowed softly, caressing the picture for a moment before making up her mind.

She ripped it up with a smile, there was no need to dwell on the past any longer.

End.

Chapter Text

“Why are we here, again?”

The black haired male sighed, it had been the fourth time this week alone that his sister had dragged him out to go here. He didn't even like this stupid shop, with its dumb decorations and stupid merchandise which mostly consisted of scented candles and other 'girly' stuff he couldn't be bothered with.

He glanced over at Lazuli who was browsing the many shelves in the back of the tiny store. Really, they could have at least expanded the building seeing as how busy it always was in here.

Lapis tugged at his shirt collar, it was stuffy and warm.

“Hurry up will you!”

But his sister wasn't paying him any attention, instead, she walked further back until she was out of sight.

“Forget this.”

Lapis smirked as he checked for her one more time, then bolted for the door. Sure she would be mad when she realized he had ditched her but he had more important stuff to do. He crossed the busy intersection and entered a newly opened record store.

Meanwhile, Lazuli was still at the back of the store, stealing glances at the front register through gaps in the endless rows of small glass jars of candles. The mingled scents irritated her nose but she didn't care. Her focus was entirely on the short male cashier who was helping other customers with a brilliant smile on his face.

The shop was fairly new, just opened business a few months ago. She figured he must be new in town as well, she had never seen him before that day she curiously stepped foot in the small store back when it first had opened its doors.

He had greeted her with a smile, apologizing for the messy state of the store.

“But feel free to browse around, Miss.” He had said.

And that is exactly what she had done..many, many times now, always hiding behind these shelves so he hopefully wouldn't catch her observing him and always buying at least a small trinket so she wouldn't look so suspicious coming in almost everyday. The shelves in her room were rapidly filling with several scented candles and other trinkets and she didn't even want to think of the amount of money she had already spend in here.

All just so she could get a glance at him, see his brilliant smile and make small talk when he rang up her purchases. He intrigued her for reasons she wasn't even sure of, but no matter how much she tried to deny it at first, she'd finally come to terms with the fact that she had developed a huge crush on the short man.

In this time she had already learned quite a bit about him. She knew his name was Kuririn and that his Grandpa owned the store. His name struck her as a little odd, she hadn't heard it before in this region.

Lazuli grabbed a small jar from the shelf, not even paying attention to it as she inched her way to the front.

He was helping a different customer when someone called his name.

“Kuririn, we need to order more mint candles, don't make me forget!”

“Got it!”

Lazuli observed the older man who was stocking some shelves not too far from the register. Suddenly he caught her gaze and smiled. She looked away, something about his smile immediately set her on edge. She had a feeling she wasn't the only one who had been observant. She swallowed, hoping that she had just been over thinking things. She turned back to the register when the other customer walked away.

“Welcome to the Scented Dragon! Oh, it's you! Welcome back, Miss.”

Lazuli blushed slightly, caught off guard by his greeting and the light touch of his fingers against hers as he took the small jar from her hands. He was smiling brightly up at her.

“Found something to your liking then?”

“Yes.” She hated the small tremble in her voice.

“Ah Cinnamon Swirl, it's one of my favorites!”

Kuririn rang up her purchase.

“What's your name, Miss?” He asked.

She was caught off guard by his sudden question.

“Huh?”

“Your name? It's only fair you tell me yours since you know mine by now.” He said with a wink.

“Lazuli.” She answered, trying to stop the blush that threatened to stain her cheeks.

“That's a pretty name.”

Kuririn handed her the small bag that contained her purchase. He leaned over the counter a little, looking up at her with a small smile.

“ I hope to see you soon, Miss Lazuli,” He said softly. He held her gaze a little longer before winking a second time and stepping back.

“Have a good day!”

Lazuli swallowed, hastily turning away and making her way to the doors.

He knows...

She didn't even hear her brother yelling at her as she almost ran through the busy the street. Her cheeks felt burning hot and no matter what she did, she couldn't shake the blush off.

He knows!

She was relieved when she reached her house, panting and leaning against the tall fence.

No matter what happened, she could not set foot in that store again. She could not risk him truly find out just why she had been coming in there. Maybe she was just over reacting and maybe he didn't know after all, but the way he had looked at her had made alarm bells go off in her head, especially since his grandpa had also sent her that same peculiar look.

“Damnit.”

She unlocked the front door and made a beeline to her room, slamming the door behind her. She flopped down on her bed with a miserable sigh.

“Well, at least I got this last memento.” She said softly smiling to herself, remembering how he'd said it was one of his favorites. She reached into the bag to retrieve the small candle.

She arched her brow when a small piece of paper fell on the floor in front of her feet. She picked it up, unfolding it with mild curiosity.

Her heart literally skipped a beat when she read the contents.

'Can't wait to see you again...Call me?'
K.

Lazuli noticed he had written a phone number in the bottom corner of the note. She couldn't help herself when she hugged the note close, and almost squealed but she hastily composed herself. She took the new candle and added it to her, what she assumed, still ever growing collection.

Now she only had to muster up the courage to actually pick up the phone and dial his number....

Chapter Text

“I just don't see how you could fail this test for the second time in a row, Krillin.”

Krillin let out a sigh as he sat up a little straighter in his chair. His instructor was furrowing his brows at him from the other side of his desk.

“You are top of this year's class, you passed all the exams so far and you did excellent on your ride-along days. What's going on here?”

“I guess my nerves are getting the best of me.” The small man said miserably.

It wasn't a lie, he did get nervous the past two times. He hadn't been able to concentrate as well as he usually could on regular exams, knowing that this last hurdle stood in his way of becoming an actually licensed police officer.

“You've got to do something about that, I would hate to see you not make it. I would love to have you on my squad, you know.”

His instructor leaned forward, resting his elbows on the surface of his desk.

“You do realize this is your last chance? After this you will never be able to try out again.”

Krillin gulped softly, that was something he really did not need to hear right now, but he had already known. His teachers at the academy had been pressing this particular point several times throughout the course.

“Listen, why don't you go home and relax, do nothing, or do something fun to distract yourself. Look over the material one more time before getting a good night's sleep so you'll be well rested for tomorrow's exam.”

Krillin stood up and shook the man's hand.

“I expect you to make it tomorrow Krillin, I know you can do it!”

“Thanks, Sir.”

With that, Krillin left the police station. He walked around the city aimlessly for a little while, thoughts already at tomorrow's testing. He really did not want to mess it up again.

He decided that tomorrow, no matter what happened, he would just go with his first gut instinct while answering the exam questions, he would not allow his nerves to get the best of him again.

He snorted, he already knew that was easier said than done.

Yet, if he had to be totally honest with himself, he could not deny that his nerves weren’t the only thing that kept him from passing.

His wife was less than thrilled with his career of choice, though she didn't voice it much, he knew it did restrict him just a little bit. He didn't like doing things that might upset her, but after deciding to retire from Martial Arts, he found that being an officer was the next best thing in doing good for humanity. Something he had explained to her and she had finally, begrudgingly, agreed with it.

He raised a brow when his phone started to beep. He smiled as he saw the small text message.

“Speak of the devil.” He chuckled. He typed a response before stretching out and letting out a yawn. He walked into a back alley, watching his surroundings closely. When he deemed it safe, he shot up in the air and set course for home.

Krillin swallowed softly as he looked around the waiting area. There were a few other people here that had to retake the Police Exam. In a way he was glad he wasn't the only one.

He bounced his leg up and down restlessly, this waiting was getting to him. He just wanted to get this over with. He looked at the clock, he had arrived a little early, it would at least be 10 more minutes before they would be let into the test area.

He took a small bundle of papers from the small backpack he had brought with him, deciding to use the remaining time to look over the material one more time. Though he already knew everything that was there to know. He had asked Eighteen to test him the previous night which resulted in him answering all questions she asked correctly.

He let out a sigh, putting them down when his phone vibrated in his pocket. It was a message from Eighteen.

'You can do it, I believe in you.'

Krillin arched a brow at the surprising message. She hadn't sent him such an encouraging message before, since she wasn't too happy about what he was doing so to get a text like this right now, gave him a much needed confidence boost.

“If you are ready, you may proceed into the next room.” A deep voice suddenly said.

Krillin hastily responded to her before turning his phone off and putting it away. Taking one last deep breath, he set foot into the examination room.

Two hours later, Krillin stepped outside into the warm rays of the sun, shielding his eyes against its brightness for a moment.

He didn't really know how to feel about his exam, but he had a feeling this time things went a little better though. He only hoped it was good enough.

“Daddy!”

“Huh?” Krillin turned around to the source of the sound. He had only seconds to react when Marron ran into his arms.

“Hey firefly! What are you doing here?” Krillin said lifting her up. He smiled when Eighteen walked up to them.

“Well this is a surprise.” He said.

“We were in the area.” Eighteen simply said. She crossed her arms as she regarded him for a moment.

“How did it go?”

“Better than last time, I hope. I don't know... I guess we'll just have to wait and see.” He answered softly.

He let go of Marron, taking her hand instead. The small girl took a hold of her mother's hand as well and proudly walked in between them as they made their way through the bustling street.

“What were you doing here?” Krillin asked curiously.

“Nothing in particular, just waiting for you.” Eighteen admitted with a small smile.

She looked down at him.

“I know this is going to be hard to believe, but I really do hope you passed this time, Krillin.” She added softly.

Krillin smiled slightly.

“Thanks Eighteen, that means a lot to me.”

He let out a sigh. It would be a few days before he would get the final results in the mail. He was already dreading it. He wouldn't know what to do if he failed yet again. But he decided to not let it ruin the rest of his day. He squared his shoulders and shook his head, banishing the depressing thoughts from his mind.

“So, anywhere you need to go?” He asked. Eighteen shook her head.

“Not really, though we do need some groceries.”

“And ice-cream!” Marron added, she let go of Eighteen's hand and pointed at a colorful building a little ways in front of them.

“Remember Mommy, you promised we could get some when we came back to the city!”

Eighteen arched her brows at that.

“I guess I did, hm?”

Marron nodded eagerly.

“Sounds like a plan to me!” Krillin added.

“Yes!” Marron squealed happily letting go of Krillin also and going ahead. Eighteen chuckled as she watched her daughter stop at the entrance, impatiently motioning for them to hurry up. She took a hold of Krillin's hand and squeezed it softly.

“Come on, let's go in before someone loses her patience and orders the whole menu.”

Krillin's eyes widened at that. He chuckled, nodding in agreement.

Eighteen unzipped her raincoat and shrugged it off, hanging it to dry. She frowned as she hastily made her way to the kitchen to grab a small towel to dry her soaking hair off. She halted her step when she observed her husband at the kitchen table, he was looking at something in front of him on the table.

“Hey.” She greeted softly. She took a clean towel from the cabinet and started drying her hair.

Krillin looked up at the sound of her soft voice.

“How did it go?” He asked, referring to Marron's surprisingly hard transition with going to school.

“Better.” Eighteen said

“At least she didn't cry as much this time.” She said with a sad look.

“I hate to leave her there when she's so upset.”

Krillin nodded.

“It'll get better once she's used to it.”

“I guess.”

Eighteen sat across from him at the table.

“What's that?” She asked pointing at the envelope in front of Krillin.

“Test results.”

“And? Did you pass this time?”

“I don't know.” Krillin said with a sigh.

“I'm scared to open it.”

Eighteen arched a brow at that. Sometimes her husband could be so silly.

Krillin shoved the envelop toward her.

“You do it, I'm too nervous.”

Eighteen took a hold of the envelop, turning it around in her hands for a moment.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Krillin said not looking at her. His heart was beating rapidly when he watched her open the envelope slowly.

Eighteen read the letter's contents, but didn't say a word. Krillin gulped, he tried to read her expression to no avail. Eighteen was very good at keeping a so called poker face, no matter the situation.

He let out a shaky sigh.

“Well?”

She looked up from the letter, smiling fondly at him.

“Congratulations, you passed.”

“Wha? Are you serious?!” Krillin said standing up abruptly resulting in his chair falling to the floor with a loud bang. He didn't care as he made his way to where she was, taking the piece of paper from her hands. He was shaking slightly as he reread it at least five times.

It was true, right there in black and white. He had passed the exam with an almost perfect score.

“I don't believe it.” He whispered.

“Well you better believe it, you've been moping around long enough.” Eighteen said. She snaked an arm around him and pulled him into her lap.

Krillin let out a surprised yelp at the sudden movement.

“I guess you're right, I have been a bit of a downer lately, haven't I?” He said softly. He was still holding on to the letter.

“It's okay, I've been kind of hard on you too, regarding this whole police business.” Eighteen admitted with a chuckle. She pecked him on the lips affectionately.

“But I really am happy for you.”

Krillin smiled, laying the letter aside as he returned her kiss.

He couldn't wait to see where this new career would take him, but he already knew he was going to love every moment of it.

Chapter Text

“I'm home.”

Eighteen turned towards the soft familiar voice. Krillin was standing in the door with a tired smile on his face. Her eyes widened slightly as she took in his battered form.

She set down her cup of tea and hastily made her way over to him, supporting him as he walked towards the couch.

“I'm okay, just sore and tired,” Krillin said softly when he noticed the concerned look she gave him.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, just happy to be home in one piece.”

Eighteen couldn't disagree with that statement. She had been worried about him from the moment he left to join the battle.

“Where's Marron?”

“She's napping, she will be really happy to see you when she wakes up.”

Krillin couldn't help the small sigh of relief knowing that his daughter and wife were safe. He swallowed a sudden lump in his throat. He didn't dare to think about what could have been a very different outcome if it hadn't been for Whis and his time turning abilities.

Just thinking back at the moment he saw the Earth vanish, made his eyes water. He couldn't describe the feeling that coursed through him right then at the realization he had just lost his family. He clenched a fist.

Eighteen stood up, intending to grab the first aid kit from the kitchen to take care of his scrapes and bruises, but Krillin quickly took a hold of her wrist.

“Don't go, please.” He said softly. There was a slight tremble to his voice which confused her yet she had no time to question him for Krillin had wrapped his arms around her, hugging her very tightly.

She could feel him shake and realized he was crying though she wasn't sure why.

“Hey...what's wrong?” She asked baffled while returning his embrace. She gently rubbed his back, hoping to comfort him. She could tell he was very distraught but didn't understand why. As far as she knew, the battle had been won.

“Krillin?”

Krillin responded by tightening his hold on her some more, it was getting a little hard to breathe but Eighteen didn't push him away. He was saying something but she didn't understand his words.

“What?”

Krillin let go of her to compose himself as best as he could. It seemed now that the tears were flowing freely, he just couldn’t stop. He wiped at his eyes to no avail. He looked up into Eighteen's worried face, reaching up to gently tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear.

“I can't believe I almost lost you, if only for a m...moment, and I was powerless to stop it. I couldn't do anything to prevent it. It hurt so much to think....to think..” But he choked up, letting out a soft sob as he turned away from her.

“To think you had died. You and Marron...you were gone. I n...never had a chance to say goodbye. I never want to experience that again.”

“Died?” Eighteen repeated softly.

“I think you're exhausted and your mind is starting to play tricks on you, I can assure you, me and Marron are very much alive.” Eighteen said with a slight chuckle but her smile faltered when Krillin looked back up at her.

“I know that, but it could've easily been the other way around if it wasn't for Whis.” And with that, he proceeded to tell her about the fight and how Frieza had blown up the planet in one final attempt to trump them all.

“...and then Whis turned back time, so for you, it basically never happened. And I am happy about that, I really am. But it doesn't take away that I saw the planet explode, I saw you d...die! It's a horrible feeling to know that once again I was totally useless in protecting you!” Krillin said softly. He bit his lip as more tears fell. Soon he wouldn't have any left.

Eighteen had to sit back and gather her thoughts.

Krillin let out a sigh as he too sat back, leaning against the soft cushions of the couch. Turning towards Eighteen, he curled into her side, wrapping an arm around her waist and burying his face into her neck, hiding from the world for a moment.

And Eighteen just held him close, now having a much better understanding of why he was so upset. She listened as he relayed more details of the grueling fight, including how he had choked up because seeing Frieza had brought back the horrible memory of dying at his hand.

After he fell silent, they just sat holding on to each other for a little while until Eighteen gently nudged Krillin's shoulder, pushing him away from her just a little so she could look him in the eyes. Without a word, she gently took a hold of his face, tracing her thumbs over his tear-stained cheeks before planting a soft kiss on his lips.

“It's over now. We're safe, you're safe and that's all that matters in the end.” She whispered.

“Thanks, Eighteen.”

She just nodded before letting go of him.

“Now let me go get that first aid kit, we've got some patching up to do.” She joked squeezing his hand softly before getting up to get said kit.

She was applying the last bandage to a small scrape on his upper arm when they were interrupted by a happy yelp from the stairs.

“Daddy!”

Marron quickly made her way down and practically jumped into Krillin's lap to hug him tight. The small man winced at the force of all of it but hugged her back just as tightly.

“Hey there, sleepy head. Did you miss me?”

“Of course! Are the bad guys gone now?” Marron asked as she made herself comfortable in his lap, grabbing a hold of his arm to trace a bandage.

“Did you get hurt bad?” She asked with wide eyes as she carefully observed all the other bandages he was sporting.

“Nah, these are just small bruises, nothing your mommy can't fix!”

“Good! Oh, I know! I made something that will make you feel better! Don't tell him, mommy!” The little girl quickly made her way towards the kitchen. Krillin watched her go before turning towards Eighteen with a serious expression on his face, he opened his mouth but she held a hand up.

“I already know what you're going to say and I agree. What she doesn't know won't hurt her.”

Eighteen stood up.

“I'm going to make some new tea, mine got cold. Did you want some?”

“Sure.”

Eighteen disappeared in the kitchen just as Marron came walking out, she was hiding something behind her back.

She quickly thrust her hands forward, revealing a large piece of paper with drawings on it.

“I made this for you when we were waiting for you at your office!” Marron crawled back into his lap. She eagerly started to point out all the things she had drawn.

Eighteen joined them on the couch once the tea was done.

Krillin shared a look with her, smiling happily as he listened to his daughter’s excited chatter. He watched as Eighteen chimed in, asking Marron questions about her drawings.

He might have lost them once today, but he would make sure he wouldn't let it happen again.

Chapter Text

Krillin couldn't contain the huge grin on his face when he admired the view in front of him. Although he had only been working as a cop for a little over four months, he had already been promoted and it came with some very nice added perks. Aside from a nice bonus and gratuitous pay raise, he was now the proud owner of a much larger Police Box.

The previous one had been spacious enough of course, but it really did pale in comparison to his new location.

He carefully unlocked the door, breathing in deeply when he opened it. He smiled as he stepped in, admiring his environment and trailing his fingers over his brand new mahogany desk as he went. He set aside his lunch bag before carefully plopping down in the huge leather chair with a content sigh.
The chair was actually a bit too high for him, his feet were dangling a good few inches above the floor. He couldn't really lower it a lot either, else he wouldn't be able to look over his workspace.

He folded his hands behind his head, studying the various case studies on the wall to the left of him. Most of them were wanted posters, some already crossed out. He smiled remembering how he had caught every single one of those crooks.

“Relaxing on the job, I see.”

Krillin raised his brows as he turned to face the person who was talking to him from the doorway.

Eighteen regarded him with folded arms, following his movements with her eyes as he approached her.

“Hardly.” He replied.

The blonde cyborg stepped inside, making a beeline for his chair. She sat down, swiveling it around with her feet. Krillin almost felt a little envious of her being able to do that so casually.

“Comfortable.” Eighteen remarked. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on his desk. Krillin had taken a seat on the edge.

“I'll agree on that! So, uh, what are you doing here? Did everything go alright with Marron?”

Eighteen didn't miss the slightly worried tone of his voice.

“Just fine. After all, she was looking forward to go back to school after having to stay home for almost a week. I think she's really started to feel at home in her classroom. And as for your other question, I was in the neighborhood so I figured I'd stop by. Am I not allowed to visit my husband?”

“You know I have no problem with that, but I'm pretty sure my supervisor disagrees with me. He's still kind of strict and on his way here as we speak. Unfortunately, he knows who you are by now and I think it would be best if he didn't see you here, casually lounging in my chair.”

Eighteen chuckled lightly.

“Fine, I know where I'm not wanted.” She scoffed amused, ruffling Krillin's hair affectionately when he started to protest her statement.

“It's just a joke.” She bent down and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“See you later.”

Krillin walked up to the door with her to let her out but he quickly slammed it shut as soon as he opened it. Eighteen actually had to lift her arm to protect her face from getting hurt. She rubbed her arm with a slight frown.

“What did you do that for?” She asked confused.

“It's my boss! He's already here!” Krillin hissed panicked. “Quick! You've got to hide!”

“Where?” Eighteen said equally panicked.

Krillin hastily glanced around the room. Though spacious, it didn't have many hiding places. There was a small utility room but that was out of the question, it was filled to the brim with equipment. There was also a bathroom, but what if his boss had to use it? Krillin almost had a heart-attack thinking of that scenario.

The only other place he could think of was...

“My desk! Get under my desk and be very quiet! He usually leaves pretty quickly, he'll be here ten minutes at most!” Krillin said taking a hold of her hand. Eighteen started to protest but a knock on the door made her change her mind. She hastily did what he said and sat very still. She almost had to laugh at the absurdity of the situation she found herself in.

It was dark under there since the front was closed off from the public. There was only legroom for the person using the desk. She had to raise her knees up and curl up a little to fit. Eighteen really hoped this meeting between her husband and his boss wouldn't last long. She could already feel her posture getting uncomfortable.

Krillin gave her a thumbs up before rolling his chair in place and walking up to the door. Eighteen listened as the two men exchanged pleasantries. She could hear them walk around.

“Well Krillin, still happy with your new workspace?”

“Yes Sir, it's very nice. Thank you again for this opportunity.”
“Hm, well you do remember me telling you I would love to have you on my squad?* You have done some excellent work and truly deserve this. I trust you won't let it go to your head and disappoint me then?”

Krillin nodded his affirmation.

“Alright, looks like you've got things in order for now, very good indeed.”

Krillin watched him walk around the room once more, holding his breath when he came a little too close to where Eighteen was hiding.

“Now before I go, I'd like to discuss some matter with you, if that's alright?”

“Sure, what is it?” Krillin asked a little apprehensive. He observed his boss pull up a chair and hastily, but carefully, sat down in his own chair. He quickly glanced down at Eighteen who had scooted closer to him just in case. She was scowling up at him to which he quickly shrugged his shoulders with an apologetic look on his face.

He turned his attention away from her, listening as the other man started talking about work-related topics, trying his best to stay focused.

Eighteen shifted her position slightly because her back was starting to hurt from hunching over so much. She frowned, drowning out the boring conversation that went on above her head.

She checked her watch after a short while, noticing that Krillin's boss had already been in there for over twenty minutes and it didn't look like he was leaving anytime soon. She shifted once more, the strain on her back becoming increasingly more annoying. She started thinking of ways she could stretch out just a little without bringing attention to herself.

She carefully leaned forward until she could turn to a kneeling position, mindful not to hit her head. She watched as Krillin's legs dangled nervously in front of her and that's when an idea formed.

“Well, what is your opinion? I'm pretty sure we could introduce quite some new and unique ideas this way, don't you agree?”

“Yes, it does sound very excITING!” Krillin squeaked all of a sudden, eliciting a strange look from his supervisor.

“Sorry about that, I thought I felt something crawling on my leg.” He said immediately, trying very hard to not look down at his lap.

Eighteen almost gave herself away but stifled her laughter just in time at his reaction to her practically hugging his lap. The position still wasn't one of the best, being that her knees kind of dug into the carpet, but at least she could comfortably rest her upper-body this way. She gently pulled the chair forward to make sure she kept completely hidden. In doing so, she accidentally hit a button.

Krillin gulped when he felt himself go downwards quite a bit, but tried to ignore it. He was still high up enough and it looked like his boss hadn't seen it happen. He was droning on about some new innovations that would be introduced to the SCPD very soon. Krillin tried his hardest to concentrate on what he was saying but it was kind of hard to do when your wife was making herself pretty comfortable in your lap.

Eighteen noticed his discomfort and grinned, tugging at his shirt. Krillin cast his eyes downwards briefly, feeling his cheeks grow warm at the devious expression she was aiming at him.
He knew that look on her face, and for once in his life dreaded the meaning behind it. He tried to very discreetly shake his head at her while keeping his focus forward.

“With this new technology, we can also introduce a better way to catch speeders. Lord knows we need something drastic, these people are out of control on the roadways these days!”

“T..that's right! They're a danger to everyone.” Krillin said a little too loudly, but the other man didn't seem to notice.

“True!” He agreed passionately. “You know, I've been saying it for quite some time now, but no one was willing to listen. Well, you know what happened just last week because of this. The woman didn't make it last I heard. She died of her injuries two days ago.”

Krillin could practically feel the color drain from his face for a moment when he felt his wife's skilled fingers on his zipper. He tried to cross his legs to stop her but it was no use, she had nestled herself in-between them.

His supervisor nodded in sympathy at him, mistaking his paleness as a reaction to the new information. After all, Krillin had been one of the cops on the scene that day.

“It's always hard to hear bad news like this, but something good did come from it though. Her son is still alive and they are expecting him to make a full recovery. He's out of the ICU plus we did catch the bastard who crashed into them.”

Krillin suddenly slumped forward, trying his best to cover up the unexpected movement by propping his elbows up and resting his chin on his folded hands. His knuckles were gradually turning white from intertwining his hands so tightly.

“I'm glad to hear that.” He said.

“Wasn't there a dog too? I wonder what happened to it. It was a nice dog, purebred I believe, can't recall the breed, but I think they took it to a shelter for now.”

Krillin's eyes widened for a fraction of a second, now fully leaning on his desk with his arms folded in front of him. He was unable to keep quiet.

“Ssshit...ZU! It was a Shihtzu I believe! He said, hastily trying to cover up the slip of words.

“Oh right! Ah anyway, it doesn't matter now. What were we talking about again?”

“H..high speed camera's and...uh..new projects?” Krillin replied, licking his lips nervously. He could feel himself start to sweat when his boss gave him a peculiar look.

“Are you alright? You look a little flustered.”

Krillin wanted to disappear through the floor when he could practically feel Eighteen chuckle soundlessly at his boss' question.

I'm fINE! I mean, I'm fine. Just..ah..just excited to be here and all. Can't wait to get cracking on these cases!” He said with a crooked smile, pointing at a large stack of documents to his right.

“And I'm sure you'll do a great job! You know, I was wondering if you ever thought of working your way up? I know you're still fairly new to the job, but I really do think you have the potential.”

Krillin nodded, not trusting himself to reply verbally at the moment.

“Good, just keep it in the back of your mind.” His supervisor gave him another look, leaning forward over the desk.

“Are you sure you're okay? Your face looks awfully red by now. You're not getting sick I hope, are you running a fever?”

Krillin panicked, grabbing a hold of the ledge and pulling himself forward quickly so he was now almost pressed against the desk..

Eighteen's eyes watered slightly at the sudden movement. She gulped softly but didn't stop what she was doing. Glancing upwards, she still could make out her husband's face somewhat through the tiny gap between him and the desk. She mentally high-fived herself when she saw how flustered he looked. The color had begun to spread to his neck.

“No no no! I'm fine! It's just a little h..hot in here.” Krillin answered, holding his hands up. He was straining to keep his voice steady and his eyes focused on his boss.

“Hm? It feels good in here to me though, the new AC seems to be working fine.”

Krillin felt his heart literally skip a beat when he witnessed the other man stand up and walk towards the control panel next to the door. He hastily reached under the desk in an attempt to stop his wife, but she just grabbed a hold of his hands and held them down.

“Hnggquit it!” He hissed very softly through his teeth, never taking his eyes off the other person in the room.

“Did you say something?”

Krillin jerked his hands free from Eighteens grip, folding them on the desk in front of him while shaking his head.

“No, I was just thinking aloud for a moment on how to go about solving some of these.” He let out a nervous laugh, once more pointing to the documents on his desk.

“That's the spirit! Though I wouldn't want you to strain yourself!”

Krillin almost laughed at that notion, knowing full well that's what he had been doing so desperately all this time.

“You really do not look well, maybe you should just call it a day today. You've been putting in a lot of hours lately. Tell you what, give your wife a call to pick you up and get some rest.”

Krillin could not stop the sigh of relief when Eighteen halted her actions at that, but almost instantly panicked again. If he were to dial her number right now, she would get caught. He knew she always carried her phone with her so that she could be reached if something happened with Marron or him. He also knew that she usually had it on full sound mode.

He felt an insistent tugging at his shirt, knowing she was trying to tell him not to call her.

“No there is no need. I'm fine. I'll just make sure to take it a little easier today.”

“Alright, suit yourself.” His supervisor glanced at his watch, raising his brows in surprise.

“Would you look at the time! I better get going, I have more rounds to do.”

Krillin gulped, there was no way he could just stand up to let him out the door, not in the state he was in.

But his boss solved that dilemma for him by opening the door himself, holding his hand up.

“No need to get up, just sit tight and make sure to take it easy. If you do decide to go home, let me know so I can appoint someone else to your post for the day. Have a good day!”

Krillin let out the breath he had been holding when the door shut. For a good few minutes, he just sat there, watching it just to make sure his boss wouldn't come walking back in.

He pushed himself away from the desk and looked down at Eighteen who was looking up at him with a very smug smile on her face. Before he could even begin to talk, she winked at him.

“At least let me finish what I started.”

Krillin wanted to protest but it was futile, instead, he just let himself relax against the back of his chair.

Eighteen snickered when she felt him surrender to her, she could feel him bury his hands in her hair as he arched his hips just a little with a soft moan.

“E..eighteen you've...stop, I'm..” He tried to push her away but she wouldn't have it. He tried to control himself but it was useless because she seemed to be determined to let him finish.

“Damn it... Eighteeennn.” Krillin slumped in the chair. He let out a content sigh, wincing slightly as Eighteen discreetly tucked him back into his pants before zipping it up.

She licked her lips, wiping the corner of her mouth with her thumb as she pushed him away from her so she could stand up and stretch out the kinks in her back.

She chuckled at her husband's nicely flustered face.

“Well, that was an adventure.”

Krillin frowned up at her when he came back to his senses.

“We could have been caught, we so could have been busted! You could have gotten me fired among other things!” He rambled on.

“Please don't do that again, no matter how good it felt, I don't think my heart can take it!”

Eighteen grasped a hold of his armrests, leaning down and pecking him on the lips softly.

“Can't make any promises. There is just something about the chance of getting caught that excites me. You can't deny you feel the same way.” She challenged.

Krillin shivered at the look she gave him, knowing she was right.

“You're going to be the death of me one day.” He protested weakly.

“Maybe.” She said holding his gaze for a few tense seconds. Then she stood back to her full height and walked away from him.

“Don't get sick or I might have to come get you.” She winked at him before closing the door behind her.

Krillin just shook his head. For the longest time, he just sat there staring at the door, processing what had happened.

“That woman.....” He muttered with a loving smile. He shook his head and turned his attention to the files on his desk.

“Alright enough distractions for today, you got some crooks to catch!” He said to himself, taking the top document from the large pile.

Chapter Text

One.

She didn't know why she did it. There was just something about the small, and completely terrified, man before her that intrigued her.

She had to admit he was brave, trying to stand up to them.

Or maybe he was just stupid.

She leaned in closer with an almost wicked smile around her lips as she watched his expression turn even more frightened.

Was that even possible?

It was quick and chaste, but she knew she left a lasting expression when she turned away to join her brother and Sixteen.

“Bye”

Two.

She was seated in her chair, eyes widened in shock.

Frozen.

She didn't even notice him trying to get her attention, profusely apologizing for his dumb, drunk, mistake.

All she could think about was the softness of his lips against her cheek.

This time she was the one terrified.

She hadn't been the same after that.

Three.

She tried her best to just concentrate on their current situation. Both were panting as they stood perfectly still in a standoff.

He was staring up at her, the intensity of his gaze almost made her shiver.

Breathe, just breathe!

Later, she would not be able to recall who made the first move.

All she cared for was the feeling of his warm mouth against hers and the way he seemed to melt into her as she roughly pushed him back against Kame House. The moment was so intense, her heart skipped several beats.
Don't stop.

Four.

She felt inadequate, at a loss for words, as she watched him. The tears on his face made her feel uncomfortable. She did not like to see him in pain.

She knew there wasn't much she could do, but to try and console him.

Shhh, it's okay.

She reached out with her fingertips, leaving small kisses wherever they touched on his face. She felt him relax in her warm embrace as she whispered softly to him.

I'm here.

His tears dried after that.

Five.

His touch was her undoing. She shivered while desperately trying to keep a hold on him as their bodies collided in a burst of passion that overwhelmed her. Her hands found their way into his hair, pulling his face down roughly.

Come closer...

His mouth found hers and she eagerly gave in.

Yes...

The kiss was sloppy and wet, but she didn't care.

Because he was the only one who could make her feel so good.

Six.

She still can't quite comprehend just what happened. She's dazed yet weirdly alert when the little bundle in her arms moves.

She looks down into a small face, so much like her husband's that she almost does a double take. But she can see herself in the child's eyes, despite them being pitch black. She lacks a nose, but to her, she is perfect.

A miracle.

A soft laugh makes her break her gaze away from the small girl in her arms. Her husband is smiling at her with nothing but admiration for her in his eyes. She can see they're misted over with tears.

Why are you crying?

She knows the answer without asking him. She closes her eyes when he leans in to gently kiss her forehead. She smiles tiredly up at him.

She has a little family, a daughter to care for. She vows to protect her, and their happiness, no matter what.

Seven.

He can't really feel anything as he lays in bed. The sun is shining through the curtains, lighting up the face of the person in front of him.

I don't want to go.

He almost can't bear to look at her. She is holding his hand, he can see tears in the corner of her eyes even though she is trying to keep it together.

For his sake.

You were always so strong.

He squeezes her hand softly, not having much strength left in his tired and withering body.

I'm so sorry.

He can feel it, the soft touch of her mouth on his cheek. It brings back a memory from so long ago.

He smiles one last time.

Chapter Text

Krillin was smiling as he observed his seven year old daughter run towards the house. He was standing in front of the large living room window through which he had a perfect view of the moderate grassy field in front of their house. It was equipped with a playground. Marron only had to cross the street to get home. They had really hit the jackpot with the house they lived in now. It was a neighborhood in one of the nicer suburbs of Satan city with the school close by and plenty of space for kids to play and explore. The house itself was an open concept with plenty of space down, and up stairs. He made his way to the front door to open it for her.

“Papa!” Marron greeted him with a hug before she wiped her face. She was red and sweaty.

“Hey firefly, are you having fun outside?”

“Yep! But I'm thirsty now, can I have a lemonade?” The small girl asked eagerly.

“Sure thing!” Krillin followed her into the kitchen, listening to her chatter with a grin on his face as he prepared her drink. Marron drank it all in one gulp.

“More please!”

Krillin shook his head but gave her another cup full, This time she sipped slower, leaving half of the drink on the table. Krillin glanced at the clock, it was getting pretty late in the afternoon. He took an apron from a hook next to the fridge. He might as well start supper.

Marron had retrieved a colouring book and some markers and was colouring at the kitchen table. Krillin lifted his brow at that.

“You're not going back outside?”

Marron shook her head.

“Not yet, in a little bit. I want to cool off because its so hot!”

Krillin couldn't argue with that. Summer was dwindling down but that didn't mean it was getting any cooler just yet. In fact the temperatures had soared within a span of a few days. He started cutting up potatoes when his pocket vibrated. He quickly grabbed his phone, smiling at the message.

“Your mommy will be home soon.” He said over his shoulder.

“Good, I hope I can finish my picture for her!”

It was quiet after that, safe for Marron's soft humming. Krillin glanced back at her. She was getting so big. He was almost saddened by the fact that she grew up so fast. She would already have to go back to school in three weeks. But even now, he could clearly recall the moment he'd held her for the first time.

He smiled to himself, rinsing the potatoes off before starting on the vegetables. He had a few days off and enjoyed them immensely, just spending time with his little family.

Marron stopped her colouring to admire her work for a moment. She reached for her drink but overstretched, knocking it clear off the table. It landed on the floor with a bang, sending lemonade everywhere.

“Oh fuck!”

Krillin's eyes widened.

“MARRON!” He said shocked.

The little girl jumped at his loud voice. He had never raised his voice at her that way. Her face flushed pink.

“Sorry for spilling lemonade, I accidentally dropped it, really!” She said hastily, almost stumbling over her words.

“I don't care about the drink right now, what I care about is your potty mouth. We don't speak like that in this house! Where did you even learn such a bad word?” Krillin said. He knelt in front of her, there was a frown on his face.

“Well?”

Marron bit her lip. She was nervously playing with the hem of her summer dress.

“Answer me, please.” Krillin said in a stern voice.

“I don't...I mean...I...I didn't know that was a bad word, honest! B..because Mama says it all the time.” Marron said quickly, her face had become even redder and Krillin could see she was struggling to hold back tears.

“I'm sorry, Daddy. Please don't yell again, I won't say it again, I promise..”

Krillin sighed as the tears finally escaped. He wiped them away gently.

“Don't cry, I'm sorry for yelling like that, I was just a little shocked, okay?”

Marron nodded.

“What did you mean with Mommy says it all the time?” Krillin asked cautious.

“Well when she is angry at the store if they don't have something, or when she hurts herself or drops something.” Marron said. She listed a few more instances and Krillin almost sighed in relief but that was short lived when Marron made her next statement.

“Aaand I heard her yell it really loudly one night, it woke me up. I think she got hurt really bad because the next day she walked a little funny.”

Krillin fought the blush that threatened to come out. Their house was supposed to be pretty well insulated, but maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to invest in some extra soundproofing, his wife could after all be a little...loud as poor Marron had obviously experienced. He was so relieved that she was too small to really understand exactly what she had heard, that he gave her a hug.

“Lets clean this mess up, alright.?”

Marron nodded, already grabbing a handful of paper towels. After they'd cleaned up, she sat back at the table.

“Daddy?”

“Hm?” Krillin was stirring the contents of one of the pans carefully before he turned the gas off. Supper was done..

“Are the other words Mommy says bad words too?”

He lifted a brow at that.

“What other words?” He sat across from her at the table.

Marron bit her lip again.

“If I say it, will I be in trouble?”

Krillin shook his head.

“No.”

Marron let out a relieved sigh then starting listing off a few other words she'd hear Eighteen say.

“I think that's all, are they bad?”

Krillin could only nod, mind reeling with what had been revealed to him.

He cleared his throat.

“Marron, don't repeat anything your mother says.” He said solemnly.

“Okay.”

They both turned their heads when they heard the sound of keys being stuck in a lock.

Eighteen raised a brow when she walked in the door and found two identical pairs of black eyes focused on her from the kitchen table.

"Hey." She greeted. Her daughter gave have a small wave and a "hi" back but her husband was frowning heavily at her.

"What?" She asked, confused as to why he wouldn't speak to her.

Krillin turned to his daughter with a small smile.

"Marron, why don't you go back outside now and play with your friends a little longer? Mama and I need to have a little talk, okay? I'll come get you in a little bit."

The small girl nodded eagerly. "Okay!" She gave both her parents a quick hug before dashing out of the door. Krillin watched her cross the street and reunite with her friends.

“What's going on?” Eighteen asked. She had dumped her bags on the couch. It had been a tiring day shopping for school supplies for Marron, among other things.

Krillin turned on her.

“You're corrupting our daughter!” He said, pointing a finger at her.

“What? What are you talking about?” Eighteen asked with raised brows. She was now thoroughly confused.

“Corrupting...?”

“That's right!.” Krillin relayed what had happened just moments ago.

“You really need to watch what you say around her, kids pick up a lot more than you think.” Krillin said crossing his arms.

Eighteen rubbed her temples.

“I'm sure it was just a one time thing, honestly it's not the end of the world.”

“Are you kidding me?” Krillin said with a grimace. “How can you even say that? What if she repeats it in front of her friends or even worse, at school in front of the teachers? And I'm not just talking about the f word either, the other words are just as bad.”

Eighteen shrugged out of her jacket. “Which ones?” She asked slightly alarmed.

“I'm not repeating them, you know what I am talking about.” Krillin said with a pointed stare. He was still scowling up at her. Eighteen bit her lip. She could understand where her husband was coming from but in a way, the whole situation was so absurd to her that she wanted to laugh. She knew better to do that though, she didn't want to upset Krillin more.

“I'll try and watch myself around her, okay?” She said with a sigh.

But Krillin didn't reply, instead he adopted a thoughtful expression. Eighteen cocked her head slightly, not really knowing what to think of it. She watched him as he pushed past her without a word and ran up the stairs.

“Hey, what are you doing?” She called after him. He didn't answer her. Eighteen grabbed a few of the bags and followed him up. She found him in their room, rummaging through the closet.

“Ah, perfect!” He exclaimed.

Eighteen raised her brows at the object in his hands. It was an old glass jar that had served as storage for sensu beans back at Kame House. Krillin was smirking at her as he tossed it from one hand to the other.

“I know you say you're gonna try and keep it pg, but somehow I don't really believe you.” He started. Eighteen huffed at that but didn't say anything, she was too curious as to what he had come up with now. She followed him downstairs, into the kitchen where he grabbed one of Marron's markers and a piece of paper. He also got some tape and taped the paper to the jar.

Eighteen actually chuckled when he finished and turned the jar so she could see it.

“A swear jar?”

“Yup.” Krillin said with a grin. He put it on one of the side tables in the living room.

“And its purpose is?”

“Remember that one episode of Nanny in Charge? Where they had different jars for those unruly kids with balls in it and where they would take away one when they behaved bad?”

Eighteen thought back. She remembered it, they loved watching that show after all. Seeing all those misbehaving kids reminded them just how lucky they were with a well behaved child like Marron, though she could definitely have her moments.

“So you're gonna put balls in there too? Seriously?” Eighteen said with a shake of her head.

“I'm not sure what that would accomplish.”

“Oh I'm not the one filling this up, you are. With money.” Krillin said. “Let's say...50 zennie for every swearword, 100 if you use it in front of our daughter.”

Now Eighteen couldn't stop her laughter.

“You can't be serious!”

“Oh but I am, I'll personally see to it you'll do too! Eighteen, this is not funny okay! This is serious, you really need to learn to keep it down. I don't want Marron growing up, cussing like a sailor.”

“I don't even have money.” She started but Krillin gave her a dismissive a wave with his hand at that.

“You and I both know that's a lie. You've got more than enough from those 'secret' street tournaments you and your brother like to participate in.”

Eighteen pinched the bridge of her nose with an annoyed sigh.

“Fine! I'll play along with your little game.”

“Good, though it's not a game.” Krillin retorted.

“No, it's bullshit, that's what it is.” Eighteen muttered. Krillin frowned at her.

“Well there goes your first 50, fork it over.” He said scowling, holding up his hand.

“What? No way, that didn't count!”

Eighteen locked her eyes on his in an intense staring match, something that usually deterred the small man from the situation at hand. But it seemed he really was serious this time..

“Give it up babe, I'm not standing down on this one.”

She sighed in defeat and dug in her wallet.

“Here.” She sneered, almost throwing it at him. Krillin caught it and dumped it in the jar.

He shook his head.

“Why do I have a feeling this jar will be more than full by the time you learned to control yourself?” He muttered. Eighteen just walked away.

Eighteen scowled heavily as she dropped another few crisps bills in to the swear jar. Her tournament winnings were depleting fast, a fact she'd brought up to Krillin who had only shrugged at her.

“It's your own fault, stop swearing and you won't lose any more money.” Is what he had said before leaving for his evening shift at the police station.

Eighteen grimaced. It was not as easy as she had thought at first. It really didn't help that Krillin watched her like a hawk whenever he was around and he had somehow gotten Marron to do the same.

The small girl was currently sitting on her knees on the floor in front of the side table that held the jar, drawing circles on its surface while humming a soft tune. Eighteen had figured she could have gotten away with some of it whenever Krillin was at work but Marron made sure he got the run down when he got home. She was almost happy her daughter started school in a few days. She shook her head immediately feeling guilty for thinking like that.

Marron turned around to look at her with a smile.

“Your jar is almost full, mommy!”

“I see that.”

“Daddy said I could get something form the toy store if you fill it up to the top.”

“I know.” Eighteen let out a sigh as she sat down on the couch. Marron joined her, snuggling into her side.

“It's about bed time for you.” Eighteen said. They had started Marron back on her regular routine since school was about to start in a few days. It was silent for a few moments.

“Mama?”

“Hm?”

“I don't think I want a new toy...” Marron trailed off.

“And why is that?” Eighteen asked surprised.

“Dunno.” The girl replied with a shrug. “I just don't.”

“I like it better if you don't have to fill the jar the top.” She said after a moment of silence. Eighteen didn't miss the meaning behind those words. It wasn't as if she enjoyed cussing in front of her daughter, she just lacked a filter at times. She pulled her into her lap.

“Well I guess I'll have to try even harder, don't I?”

Marron nodded eagerly.

“Yes!”

“Any tips for me?” Eighteen asked in a playful tone.

Marron crossed her arms as she thought long and hard on a way to help her mother save her money. She clapped her hands together when an idea came to mind.

“Instead of saying those bad words, you can make new un-bad words!” She said with a triumphant smile, clearly pleased she had come up with such a brilliant idea.

“Like what?” Eighteen spurred her on.

“I dunno....what do you think?” Marron said with a shrug.

“Hmm, how about we make some tea and think about it, together?”

“I thought I had to go to bed soon?” Marron said with a grin.

“I'll make an exception, but only if you help me, okay?” Eighteen said tugging gently at one of her daughter's pigtails.

“Deal! I want strawberry tea, please!”

A few days later, routine had returned to the Chestnut household as Marron went back to school. Eighteen glanced at the jar. She and Marron had worked out a solution and she gradually got used to using less abrasive words whenever the need called for it. Even Krillin was impressed with her.

Eighteen picked the jar up with a smile. She would never admit it to Krillin, but in a way she was glad he had forced her to this. She had clearly learned a lesson from it plus she did have to agree with him. It would be really bad if Marron grew up taking after her with her way of words.

A glance at the clock told her Krillin was late, it was already past midnight.

She began to worry a little, wondering if she should call him but as if on cue, her husband pulled up in the drive way.

Eighteen turned around when the door opened.

Krillin walked in, taking off his helmet with a tired sigh. His uniform was tattered and dirty. Eighteen raised a brow.

“What happened to you?”

“Long story.” Krillin replied. He eyed the jar in his wife's hands. He raised a brow.

“Don't tell me...” He trailed off.

“Have some faith in me, geesh!” Eighteen said with a chuckle. She put the jar back in its spot.

“I didn't have to put anything in it, you can ask Marron tomorrow if you wish.” She said with a slight frown.

“I believe you, babe.”

“You should. And I didn't even fill it up completely like you expected.” She said referring back to the day he had dug the jar from the closet.

“Yup, I take that back.” Krillin said with a grin. He took a step towards her and levitated up to plant a chaste kiss on her mouth.

“You did well.”

Krillin stretched and yawned.

“I'm going to take a quick shower and go to bed.” He said. Eighteen shut off all the lights and followed him up the stairs. She watched him disappear in the bathroom before making her way to her daughter's bedroom. She softly opened the door, peaking in on the sleeping girl. Eighteen shook her head as she walked in. Marron had kicked all the blankets to the floor and was spread out over the bed, snoring.

“You're just like your daddy.” Eighteen muttered amused. There was a certain softness to her features when she carefully covered her back up, planting a kiss to the girl's forehead.

She quietly closed the door and made her way to her bedroom at the end of the hall.

When Krillin walked in minutes later, Eighteen was already in bed, propped up against the headboard. She was reading a magazine and looked up when he crawled into bed with her, laying it aside.

Krillin's eyes widened when she crawled into his lap, straddling him as soon as he'd made himself comfortable. He swallowed thickly at the look she gave him before giving in and kissing her, already knowing sleep was not going to happen anytime soon. Not that he was complaining. He eagerly let his hands wander all over her while laying down and rolling them over.

He chuckled softly when he heard his wife mutter something under her breath.

“Keep it up and that jar is going to be full by the time I'm done with you.” Krillin teased. Eighteen let out a shaky sigh, arching her body into him when he hit the sensitive spots.

“Hnh...I don't give a ….” Krillin chuckled against her mouth, drowning out the remainder of that sentence with a soft kiss.

Chapter Text

It was still dark outside when Eighteen stirred awake. The soft glowing embers in the fireplace lit up the room just enough for her to make out her surroundings. A glance at the window told her it would be daybreak soon, she could already see the first streaks of light adorning the otherwise dark skies.

She focused her attention on Krillin, who she had effectively trapped beneath her in her sleep apparently. It was no wonder she felt a little warm, he had covered both of them with the thick comforter. She chuckled to herself, Krillin had probably been cold. Unlike herself, he was not immune to the freezing temperatures in this region. A fact he loved to bring up again and again.

Eighteen buried her face into the crook of her husband's neck, inhaling his scent with a smile. She stifled a yawn before gently and carefully shifting her body so that she was no longer on top of him. Instead, she snuggled up against his back, draping one of her arms over him and taking a hold of his hand.
She lifted their intertwined hands, admiring the small rings both of them adorned.

In a way, it was still kind of hard to believe that she was actually married now. To a man who started out as her enemy no less.

Eighteen closed her eyes for a moment as she pressed herself against the short fighter. She listened to his strong and steady heartbeat for a little while, just basking in the silence of the early morning.
Krillin shifted in his sleep, turning to his back. He let out a sigh and for a second Eighteen thought he had started to wake up as well. But his light snores and sleeping face told her otherwise. Unlike her, he was a pretty heavy sleeper.

She sat up and leaned over him for a moment, planting a soft kiss on his forehead before gathering one of the sheets around her and getting up from the bed. She carefully wrapped the sheet securely around her naked body as she made her way to the small kitchen their cabin possessed.

Waiting for the water to heat up, Eighteen leaned against the counter, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She could feel the shift in temperature, the heat from the fireplace didn't quite reach the kitchen but it wasn't bothersome.
She fixed a large mug of hot tea and then made her way back to the main room. She took a seat on one of the comfortable armchairs by the window, sipping her tea slowly as she took in the scenery through the clear glass.

Everything outside was already covered up by a thick blanket of fresh snow.

Eighteen had to admit that this week of vacation had been a very thoughtful gift of Master Roshi and Oolong. And since it was all expenses paid, they should be taking advantage of it to the fullest...yet they hadn't really set foot in the rest of the resort yet despite already being there for almost two days.

Eighteen smiled to herself, allowing the blush to settle on her cheeks as she thought of the reason why they hadn't been outside much yet. She set her mug aside and wrapped her arms around herself. No matter how much she loved their intimacy and closeness, today would be different. She actually did read some of the pamphlets they had found when settling into the cabin and it seemed like they had a lot of interesting activities to do.

She glanced behind her, Krillin was now on his stomach, spread out over the whole bed. Eighteen chuckled at that before turning back to the window. Her thoughts started to wander back to the day of their wedding.

It had been an eventful day, to say the least. She would be lying if she didn't admit she had been just a tad nervous, though she really hadn't known why.

After getting ready, she had spent the remainder of the time with her brother on the roof of Kame house. Eighteen had been surprised he had actually shown up. But then again, when she had told him about marrying Krillin he had been happy for her. She was grateful the two men seem to really get along.

Of course, Seventeen being the observant brother he was, had noticed her nervousness. She had tried to deny it of course, but he had seen right through her and actually managed to calm her down a little.

"Hey, it's not like Krillin will abruptly call off the wedding or say no at the altar, the guy is head over heels for you, it's sickening really."
Seventeen had joked which had earned him a punch in the shoulder.
Eighteen shook her head to herself.

It was also Seventeen who had come up with the idea of her just flying down from the roof, instead of having to walk towards Krillin, being stared at by everyone they'd invited. Eighteen had been hesitant but after Seventeen made it a dare, she couldn't refuse. Besides, she knew Krillin wouldn't mind at all.

"Plus this way, the others will see me. I want to see the looks on their faces!" Seventeen had said, something she actually could agree with.
The others never really brought Seventeen up in conversations whenever Bulma organized one of her get-togethers, but they were aware that he was alive and well. If only because Krillin had told them.

Suffice to say, Seventeen hadn't been disappointed by their reactions, but Eighteen hadn't given it much thought anymore once she was standing in front of Krillin who had the biggest smile on his face, but she could tell he was a little jittery as well. She had returned his smile, only having eyes for him. He had looked very nice in his tuxedo which was tailor-made. During the ceremony, she'd had to regulate her facial temperature several times because of it.

After it was over, Bulma had gifted them a new air-car before everyone retreated back to Capsule Corp. They had stayed behind for a little while, just talking and spending time with Seventeen. Eighteen did invite him to come to the party but he had declined, saying he wasn't one for hanging out in a crowd. After he had left, the newlyweds had hopped into the new vehicle and taken the longest way to Capsule Corp just so they could test its features out.

Of course, their friends had thought they had been up to something entirely different and it didn't help that Krillin was such an easy target for their teasing. Which they knew and had taken advantage of after they couldn't get a reaction from her.

Eighteen snorted softly to herself. It was a good thing they couldn't interrogate her newlywed husband here, he surely would've crumbled under their scrutiny. After all, they already celebrated their wedding thoroughly in private.

She drank the remainder of her tea which had started to cool off considerably. Setting the mug aside she stretched out. The sky had completely turned now, the sun was trying to poke through the thick blanket of clouds without much success. It looked to be another cold day but that wouldn't stop her from enjoying some of the Resort's amenities. She only hoped Krillin could be convinced to go outside and brave the freezing temperatures.

Eighteen leaned back against the soft pillows of the chair, smiling as she noticed it started to snow again.
It was quite a while later when she was startled by a soft voice which cut through the silence around her.

"Good morning," Krillin said. His voice was still a little hoarse. Eighteen turned towards him with a smile on her face. She took in his sleepy appearance and messy hair.

"Good morning." She greeted equally soft before standing up. She made her way over to him, letting out a surprised yelp when he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her down.
She smiled against his mouth, wrapping her arms around him as they fell back against the soft mattress of the bed before losing herself in his kiss.

Chapter Text

He didn't even know why he was here, sitting at this bar which was part of one of the most extravagant hotels Satan City had to offer. With its golden swirls decorating marble walls and fancy bottle holders that held some of the best and most expensive liquors that could be found from around the world. Krillin swirled his small glass, having enjoyed quite a few of the overpriced drinks during the evening, free of charge.

Being friends with Yamcha, who had become one of the top baseball players in the world, definitely had its perks. It was also the reason he was at the lavish establishment this evening. Yamcha had quite literally dragged him up here, saying he needed to get off Kame Island for once instead of just sitting around doing nothing.

Krillin let out a sigh, draining his glass and signaling for another. He usually didn't drink much but for some reason, he just felt like letting go, if only just for tonight.

He was surrounded by people and noise yet he still felt utterly lonesome as he turned on his stool and let his gaze drift around the room. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, laughing and talking all the while the drinks just kept flowing.

Krillin took a sip from his own refilled glass as he hopped off the stool and slowly made his way through the crowd to the other side of the room. He cringed when someone roughly took hold of him. His first reaction was to lash out but he quickly controlled himself when he came face to face with Yamcha who was grinning from ear to ear.

“Hey man, ya having a good time? Is this place out of this world or what?” He slurred heavily.

“It's...nice yea.” Krillin replied with a smile. Yamcha gave him frown at that.

“You need to loosen up some more man! I thought bringing you here would do something about that mopey attitude you've adapted ever since she left, guess I was wrong.” The taller man rubbed his chin.

“Don't tell me you've forgotten to have fun! It's been what? A year? Get over it!” Yamcha grabbed two glasses from a passing waitress. He thrust one of them in Krillin's empty hand with a smile.

“I don't need..”

But Yamcha waved his hand.

“The drinks are free, gotta take advantage of it! Now go and mingle a little. There are some really cute girls here. I'm sure you could woo a few!” He said with a wink before uncharacteristically twirling around and walking away when he heard his name called. Krillin sweat-dropped, partially wondering if he should go after him and drag him up to his hotel room to call it a night. Yamcha was clearly more than a little tipsy but then he shrugged it off, continuing his way to his destination.

Krillin breathed in the fresh air, closing the doors behind him. Instantly, he was surrounded by nothing but the sound of the large water fountain that adorned the Hotel's Gardens. He set the drink Yamcha gave him aside and started walking around.

His mind repeated the words his friend had just said to him.

Krillin let out a sigh as he sat down on one of the many benches that adorned the grassy fields. Yamcha's words had stung if only just a little. It wasn't as if he hadn't tried to move on. It was just hard on him and why wouldn't it be?

A small smile grazed his face as he thought back. He had been so happy and content. Felt so secure and validated knowing that he had at last found what he had been looking for ever since he was a teenager.

His time with Eighteen had been nothing short of amazing, They had grown so close. In fact, he had seriously considered to ask her to be his wife, because he had been certain she felt just as happy as he had been.

At least, that's what he liked to believe, even now till this day.

But one morning she suddenly had disappeared from his life. Vanished without a trace.

Krillin shook his head, no that wasn't entirely true. She did leave something. A seemingly hastily scribbled note that to this day he couldn't get the meaning behind.

Krillin reached into the inner pocket of his suit jacket, taking out his wallet. He carefully took out the now yellowed piece of paper.

'I'm sorry.'

Those were the only words written in her elegant handwriting. He bit his lip, just seeing it made his stomach turn to knots. He didn't understand what exactly she was sorry for.

For leaving him? For seemingly leading him on and making him think that everything would work out smoothly? That they would be together for a lifetime? For breaking his heart in a million pieces? Pieces he found so hard to glue back together despite him trying so hard?

His friends had been livid after they discovered what had happened. Bulma had even offered him the Dragon Radar so he could find her with the help of Shenron and give her a piece of his mind. He had declined though, thinking Eighteen must have had a very good reason to do what she did. He had stayed in that state of denial for a while before it had switched to anger and then hurt.

So much hurt.

Krillin swallowed thickly, remembering all the nights he had cried himself to sleep, unable to understand just why his life always seemed to get screwed over. He cried until he had no more tears left it seemed. After that, he had bottled up his emotions and feelings while gradually getting used to her not being a part of his life anymore.

But even now, despite everything, he could not bring himself to hate her. No matter how much she hurt him and left him in the dark. He only wished she had explained to him just why she felt the need to leave, or that she had at least properly broken up with him. Yes, that still would have been painful but it wouldn't have left him with such an emotional scar. And that way he wouldn't have had to spend the last year doubting himself in everything he did.

Krillin tucked the note back in his wallet before standing up and stretching. A glance at his watch told him it was well past midnight and he was tempted to just call it a day.

He slowly made his way back inside. The bar was still as noisy and lively as it had been before he went to get some air. He discarded his both his empty glass and the one Yamcha had given him.

Krillin decided to go and try to find the aforementioned person to tell him he would go up to his room. He weaved his way through the people, keeping an eye out for his tall dark haired friend who seemed to be impossible to find.

He turned to his left and walked back towards the front where the bar was. Something in the corner of his eyes caught his attention. He turned to investigate, thinking he had finally had found whom he was looking for. But instead, he stared right at a tall, blonde woman who had a familiar air about her. She was talking to one of the waitresses.

Krillin was frozen in his spot when she glanced in his general direction before turning away and walking towards the elevators. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind.

“It wasn't her, your mind is playing tricks on you. She's gone, has been gone. She won't be back. There is no way she would be here tonight, what would she even do here in the first place?” He scolded himself.

But something was pulling him in that direction, he couldn't stop himself as he started to walk faster, zigzagging through the crowd, keeping his eyes focused on the blonde hair little ways in front of him.

“Krillin! There you are!”

He suddenly found himself crashing into Yamcha. He tried to look past his friend but it was too late, the woman had disappeared.

“What are you looking at?” Yamcha slurred suspiciously, also turning to face the direction his friend was staring.

Krillin let out a sigh.

“Nothing, its nothing.” He said softly.

“I was looking for you actually. I think I'm going to call it a night. I'm tired and I can feel a headache coming up. Alcohol never agrees with me very well.” He joked.

Yamcha raised his brows at that but nodded.

“Okay, sleep well. See you in the morning! Though,” He bent down with a grin. “I'll probably won't see you at breakfast!”

Krillin snorted at that.

“That's okay, go enjoy yourself. I'll wait for you until it's time to check out in the afternoon, after that you're on your own.” He said also grinning.

“It's all good, I do hope you enjoyed yourself at least a little?”

Krillin nodded with a smile.

“I actually did, walked around the gardens a little bit to clear my head. Now I just wanna go and catch some sleep.”

Yamcha nodded at him before disappearing. Krillin closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath before calmly making his way towards the elevators. He could not stop the hopeful feeling as he looked around to no avail.

“It's late, you're tired and buzzed, you're just seeing things, besides she didn't really look like Eighteen...” He reassured himself once more as he pressed the button on one of the elevators.

But he could not shake the dejected feelings that stirred within him as he rode it up to his floor. For a moment, the shock of seeing that particular shade of blond hair and those piercing blue eyes had filled him with hope. He had always wanted to see her again, if only just to know that she was alright. That was also the reason he still hung around most malls a little longer than necessary whenever he had to run an errand, knowing how much she'd always loved to shop and spent the day there. He always hoped to see a glimpse of her but was disappointed every time.

Krillin stepped out of the elevator, making his way down the long well lit hallway, checking door numbers as he went. He rounded a corner, raising a brow when he came upon a glass door that led to a staircase. There were numbers on the door.

“Huh?”

He grabbed the key-card from his back pocket, almost slapping himself in the forehead as he realized his mistake. He had been so distracted in the elevator that he had gotten off on the wrong floor. With a sigh, he opened the door. He might as well take the stairs back down. He shivered as he descended the many steps. The stairwell was pretty poorly lit compared to the rest of the place. It actually gave him the chills, if only just a little. Especially since he seemed to be hearing all kinds of strange noises coming from around him including footsteps yet every time he turned around, he didn't see anyone.

Krillin decided to make a dash for the door that became visible when he rounded a corner. He couldn't stop the sigh of relief when he opened it and stepped into another well lit and spacious hallway again. He leaned against the door, clutching his shirt over his heart for a moment.

He snorted to himself, if Gohan would see him now, scared of a few noises in a stairwell, the teen would have a good laugh.

“Pathetic.” He chuckled to himself.

He slowly made his way through the hall, counting down the numbers on the seemingly endless row of doors. The hall was deserted save for a maid who was softly singing to tunes only she could hear through her earphones, She gave him a slight nod when he passed her. Krillin returned the sentiment. He rounded a corner, finally spotting his door number.

“It's about time!” He said with a yawn. He quickly walked over, ready to swipe his card through the special slot. But before he could, he was stopped by a soft voice.

A voice he hadn't heard in a very long time yet would recognize instantly no matter what.

“Hey.”

Krillin could practically feel the colour drain from his face. His eyes widened as he stood there rooted to the spot. His hand was still halfway up, clutching his key-card. He didn't even have it in him to turn around to face the person speaking to him. His body simply wouldn't move.

“You look well.”

Krillin could hear a slight tremor in the otherwise confidently spoken sentence. He licked his lips, willing himself to calm down and turn around.

When he finally was able too, his breath caught in his throat.

Before him stood the one person who he had been longing to see for all those years. He almost pinched himself to make sure this wasn't a dream.

“E..eighteen.” He whispered softly.

“Is it really you?” He couldn't stop his voice from cracking slightly. The blonde in front of him nodded. She folded her arms in front of her chest, averting her eyes.

“I...” But no other words would come from Krillin's mouth. He could only imagine how awkward this moment must look if someone were to walk into the hallway right now. He wasn't sure what to do, he was overcome with emotion yet tried so very hard to not show any hints of his inner turmoil on the outside.

He wanted to yell at her, be angry with her and make sure she knew just how much she hurt him, and yet...he didn't.

He couldn't.

He could only stare as she stood before him, take in her appearance and marvel over the fact that she looked just as good as she had done the last day he'd seen her. She didn't seem to have changed much. The only difference he noticed was her hair, which was a little shorter than he remembered.

Krillin could feel his heart literally skip several beats when she locked her eyes on his. Those piercing eyes in a shade of blue he hadn't seen on any other person. Her gaze drew him in. He couldn't look away and apparently, neither could she as they both tentatively took a step forward.

He wasn't sure what had happened at first when suddenly he found himself against the door of his hotel room, nor why he so eagerly responded to her. His mind was screaming at him to stop, to push her away. To not be pulled into this spell she still seemed to have over him even after all the time that had passed without her in his life. It was familiar yet unsettling how easy he could succumb to her.

He didn't know why his arms reached up to wrap around her shoulders nor why his hands buried themselves in her hair. His feet were off the floor, she had wedged him firmly between herself and the door. He whimpered when she pressed herself even closer to him and with it, all coherent thoughts flew out of the window.

He needed this, needed her.

It had been so long since he had felt her this close and no matter how much his mind kept screaming at him that this was the wrong thing to do, that he would regret giving in to this passion that quickly overtook them both, he just couldn't let go.

Later, he would not be able to recall just how they had managed to open his hotel room door, or how they had ended up slowly but certainly losing articles of clothing as they frantically stumbled around the dark room before collapsing on the bed in a heap of entangled limbs.

All he knew was her, she was all around him and he drank her in as he let his hands roam over every inch of her skin. He had missed her so much and from what he could gather from her desperate kisses, at least that feeling was mutual.

Their movements were rushed and uncoordinated but neither cared. All they knew was the passion that threatened to overtake them and that was all that mattered.

Krillin moaned softly, Eighteen felt so good against him. There was something so satisfyingly familiar about the way she arched her body up into him that it almost overwhelmed him. The soft sound of her shaky voice sent shivers down his spine as he watched her through heavy-lidded eyes. Her head arched backward a little and her face flushed red with colour when she cried out softly.

He couldn't take his eyes off her, could not bring himself to look away for even a second. For all he knew, this moment right here was just a one-time thing.

A passionate reunion between past lovers, but nothing more.

The reality of that thought struck him like a ton of bricks. He bit his lip, desperately trying to hold on but failing as his own body gave into release. He gently rolled off to the side, sweating and almost breathless. Next to him he could hear Eighteen's own ragged breaths. She was watching him with an almost saddened frown on her face as she reached out to him.
Krillin hadn't even realized his eyes had misted over with tears until he felt her gentle touch on his face.

Eighteen was wiping his tears away with her thumb.

“Don't cry, please.” She whispered softly.

But Krillin couldn't help himself when she pulled him close. He buried his face into the crook of her neck as he broke down. He could feel her wrap her arms around him. In that instant, he wanted nothing more than for her to hold on to him and never let go.

“I missed you so much.” He cried softly. “Why did you have to l...leave me? Was it something I did? If it was, why didn't you talk to me about it? A...all the time you were gone, I did nothing but blame myself.”

Krillin took a deep breath and wiped his eyes to no avail as he untangled himself from Eighteen's embrace to sit up. For a moment the room became eerily quiet. Hugging his legs to his chest and wrapping his arms around them, he buried his face into his knees. His shoulders were shaking violently once again.

“D...do you have any idea how much you h...hurt me?”

Krillin couldn't stop the sudden onslaught of pent up anger and frustration that enveloped him as he locked his eyes on the woman sitting against the headboard of the bed before him. All the feelings he had so carefully locked up within himself finally found a way to the surface as he lashed out at her.

And Eighteen let his words wash over her. Every verbal hit, she took it.

Because it was only the right thing to do. She deserved everything he threw at her. Krillin had every right to be angry and upset.

Suddenly he fell silent. Looking down on his hands, he shook his head.

“You know, I've kept asking myself what it was I did wrong.” He looked up at her. His face and eyes were red and swollen.

“And for a long while I've even tried to hate you for what you did, but I never could. Even after all this time I still can't. Because I still care so much about you.”

Krillin averted his gaze once more. Eighteen softly reached out to him but he swatted her hand away.

“I'm so stupid, I should've known from the start our relationship was doomed. I mean, why would I deserve happiness? I've always had hard times, they made me tougher. They made me the person I am today. What's another hurdle in my path, right? I mean, I've been hurt before, no big deal.”

He looked back at her.

“But with you....with you it was different. I just wish you hadn't made me believe in us for so long. Did it ever even mean anything to you? What we had, it was nothing but a facade, an illusion. Even right now,” He gestured around the room with his hands, sneering. “It's all just a game to you right? It always has been, I was just too stupid and love-struck to see it”

Eighteen's breath caught in her throat. Those words had stung, stung, unlike anything she had ever felt before. It rendered her completely speechless and unable to think straight for a good while.

Krillin turned his back to her as he stared off in front of him without really seeing anything. The silence around them was abruptly ended when Eighteen spoke.

“You're wrong.”

Krillin frowned at the softness of her voice, she sounded so fragile at that moment that he couldn't help but turn around.

His eyes widened considerably as he took in her appearance. She was staring straight at him with eyes full of tears, some of which had already flowed over and made their way down her delicate skin. It took him by surprise , he had never seen her cry like that before.

“You're so wrong.” She repeated. Her voice broke down into a whisper. She sniveled, wiping at her eyes.

“How?” Krillin asked softly.

“Our relationship was never “just a game” to me! To hear you say that...and believe it, hurts. You have no idea how much I regretted my decision every day, how much I missed you and how badly I wanted to come back to you, but..”

Eighteen averted her eyes as the words kept spilling from her mouth. Krillin had to lean in a little because she was speaking so softly. With every word she spoke, he could feel his anger subside. Finally, after all this time, he got the explanation he'd so desperately wanted. It didn't lessen the hurt inside much but at least now he could start to feel better and heal.

And despite the moment at hand, Krillin could not help but feel a little guilty as he gazed at her tear stained face. When she took a little breather from talking, he scooted closer towards her, holding his arms open in invitation and she took it, crawling into his lap and hiding her face into his shoulder. He gently rubbed her back in soothing circles, hoping it would comfort her just a little.

Eighteen couldn't handle it. Here she was, being comforted by the man who had every right to just kick her out of this room. To not even care about her feelings and apologies which still paled in comparison to what he had been through. It's what she had always loved and admired about him.

His compassionate and caring attitude was one of the things that had pulled her in so long ago. After what seemed like an eternity, they finally broke their embrace. Eighteen focused on the short man in front of her.

“But out of all the things I regret, spending this night with you is not one of them.” She said softly. Krillin didn't need to ask what she meant. Eighteen glanced towards the windows. The morning sky was already streaking with the colours of dawn from that she could see through the small gap in the curtains.
“It's morning, I should go.” She said. She made to get up from the bed but Krillin grabbed a hold of her before she could. He was holding her extremely close to him, it was a little hard to breathe in his tight embrace.

“Krillin?”

“Don't leave.”

He let go of her, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“I'm not sure how long it will take for me to be able to completely forgive you. But please, for now, stay here with me.”

Krillin carefully pulled her with him as he laid back down against the soft mattress, turning to his side. Eighteen mimicked his movements, facing him with a hint of confusion on her face.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, for now, I just want to be with you, I had to miss you for so long. Please stay.”

Eighteen was taken aback by the intensity of his stare, she felt her heartbeat speed up just a little bit.

“Okay.” She said in a hushed tone. She gently took a hold of his chin, leaning in close.

“Can I kiss you?” She asked softly.

Krillin was confused for a moment as to why she would ask him such a question considering they had done far more than kissing just a little while ago. But when he nodded and felt her press her mouth against his, he understood.

The intimacy they had shared earlier had been amazing, even if it was just an accumulation of pent up feelings and passion looking for a way out.

This time it was a little different.

And while they were far from resolving everything between them, Krillin gladly gave in. One more time let himself be swept away by her.

They would work things out eventually.

Chapter Text

Eighteen peeked around the corner of the kitchen. She could hear Marron's cheerful voice as she ran towards one of the bookcases in the living room. She ran back towards the aquarium with a small canister in her hands.

“Time to feed the fishes, Daddy!”

Krillin chuckled at his daughter's enthusiasm as he carefully lifted her up so she could remove the lid on top of the tank. Eighteen smiled before returning back to what she was doing.

The coffee machine was beeping, indicating that it was almost done brewing.

Ever since she had been to a coffee place with Chichi, Eighteen had been fascinated with the way the baristas always seemed to create art with the steamed milk they added to the drinks. She had asked Chichi if she had ever done something like that to which the woman had shaken her head.

Eighteen had frowned, thinking she would be able to do it herself. And that's why she had been reading up on the so-called latte art. She hadn't tried doing it yet before now though. She took another look at the small tablet on the counter next to her.

“Really, how hard can it be anyway?” She muttered. She listened for a moment, Krillin and Marron were still busy with the fish. Marron was probably telling stories about each and every fish in the aquarium like she loved to do.

That suited Eighteen just fine, she hadn't told Krillin about her latest venture. She wanted it to be a surprise. She already knew what shape she was going to work towards.

She grabbed the necessities and got to work, gently and very carefully steaming some milk until she felt it had the right consistency.

“Here goes nothing.” She said softly. She forced herself to be steady while she softly started to pour the milk into one of the coffee cups.

The second it hit the hot liquid, it fell apart. Eighteen frowned at that, wondering what she had done wrong. She had followed all the instructions. She shrugged it off and decided to be even more gently with the second cup. However, the milk spread just as fast as the first time.

Eighteen let out an annoyed sigh. She had fully expected to get it on the first try. She was, after all, very adept to learning new things almost instantly. She tossed the little jug in the sink, stirring the contents of both cups before picking them up and taking them to the living room.

Krillin looked up when she handed him a cup.

“Thanks.” He said with a smile. He was sitting on the comfortable sofa while Marron was on the floor in front of him playing with some building blocks. She held up a crooked square creation.

“Look, Mama, I build our house!”

“Very nice.” Eighteen said with a smile.

“This coffee tastes a little different,” Krillin remarked curiously.

Eighteen raised her brows at that.

“How?”

“Dunno, maybe a little creamier? Did you use a different brand of milk or creamer?”

Eighteen let out an amused chuckle. As always, she was impressed by her husband's ability to notice even the tiniest differences in things. She didn't know how he did it. To her, the coffee tasted the same as usual.

“No I didn't, but I steamed the milk this time. That might be why.” She suggested.

Krillin nodded, taking another sip.

“I think I like it better like this, what made you think of steaming the milk?” He asked.

Eighteen shrugged, careful to keep her face neutral.

“Just wanted to try something different, that's all.” She said.

Krillin gave her a smile as he drank the remainder of his coffee. He set the cup aside and joined his daughter on the floor, who immediately shoved a bunch of block his way so he could build her a car.

“Any plans for today?” Krillin asked, looking up from his little project.

Eighteen shrugged, shaking her head.

“No, let's just stay home.” She said.

“Suits me just fine! How about you, Firefly?” Krillin said directing his attention to Marron.

“Yep!” The little girl replied.

***
Krillin raised a brow as he looked down at the mug Eighteen had handed him. She hadn't stirred the contents, there was just a weirdly shaped blob of what he assumed was steamed milk floating in the middle.

He looked up at his wife in question but she was already busy helping Marron into her jacket.

“What?” She asked when she felt his gaze on her.

“Nothing,” Krillin said. He stirred his coffee with an amused grin. This had been the third time this week Eighteen had brought him his coffee like this. It didn't make it any less delicious, it was just a little strange to him. But he decided to refrain from saying anything.

“Go give Papa a hug and a kiss, we've got to go.” Eighteen said to Marron, who nodded before running towards her father.

Krillin lifted her up with a grin.

“Have a good day at school, be good!' He said

“I will, have fun at work. Catch a lot of bad guys!” Marron said when he let her down.

Krillin chuckled at that.

“See you later.” Eighteen said. She gave him a quick kiss before walking out of the door with Marron.

Krillin hastily drank the remainder of his coffee when he realized he'd better be on his way if he wanted to make it to work on time. He grabbed his keys and helmet and went on his way. It was going to be a long shift.

Meanwhile little ways away, Eighteen had just waved Marron goodbye at school and was now flying high above the clouds so people wouldn't notice her. She was frowning.

She had been practicing the latte art for several days now and she still couldn't get it to resemble some kind of basic shape. She had seen Krillin's curious looks at the blobs in his coffee, and who could blame him, really? Eighteen let out a frustrated sigh, she was getting annoyed at how hard it turned out to be. She was a quick learner but somehow the trick to making shapes out of milk was eluding her.

She stopped in midair, rubbing her chin as she thought of something. Making sure people couldn't see her, she descended in an abandoned alleyway near the coffee shop she and Chichi liked to go too. She stepped inside, it was crowded. Eighteen frowned at that, usually, it was nice and quiet when they visited.

She didn't get in line, instead, she sat at a table close to the bar where guests were served their hot drinks. Using the scanners in her eyes to enhance her vision, she quietly observed every move of the baristas who skillfully prepared every drink with care. She didn't need to know the process of steaming milk, no she had that mastered. She just needed to know how to transform those stupid blobs of hers into nice shapes.

“Miss? Can I get you anything?” A sudden voice said. Eighteen was actually startled. She looked up at a young girl who was smiling friendly at her with memo pad and pen in hand, ready to take an order.

“Just some tea please, no cream or sugar.”

“Alright, anything else. Can I interest you in one of our famous chocolate chip cookies?”

“No thanks.”

“Okay, I'll be right back with your tea!”

But Eighteen's attention was already back to the baristas behind the bar, one in particular who seemed to be fond of making hearts. She gently sipped the tea her server brought as she focused all her attention on him, filing away every movement for later use. Sometimes the enhancements Gero did to her came in handy, no matter how much she still resented that man for what he did.

When she felt she had observed enough, she paid for her drink and left the establishment, filled with new determination to try again, and this time she would make sure she succeeded. A look on her watch told her it was almost lunchtime. Since Marron ate at school, she decided to pay her husband a visit at his station and eat lunch with him.

***
Krillin sat down with a sigh, it had been just one of those days! He didn't know what was wrong with people, but it seemed that everyone was feeling the need to break the law.

He smiled when Marron snuggled up to him at the couch to watch some cartoons, they'd just had supper and it was almost time for her to go to bed. He watched as she let out a yawn, trying to hide it behind her hand.

“Looks like someone had a busy day at school, today!” He said with a chuckle.

“I'm not tired!” Marron said with a frown. Krillin shook his head at that, she looked so much like her mother when she did that.

“I didn't say that.” He said holding his hands up in defense.

“But it is time for bed.”

“Ten more minutes!” Marron challenged.

Krillin shared a look with Eighteen, who smiled behind her hand.

“Ask your mother.” He said with a grin, Eighteen shot him a look at that.

Marron folded her hands, giving Eighteen the best expression of the so-called 'puppy dog eyes', a trait she clearly had inherited from her father.

“Fine, ten more minutes. But after that no more asking or complaining!” She said with a stern voice.

“Okay!” Marron said. She snuggled back into Krillin's side. Eighteen joined them on the couch. Not even five minutes later, there was soft snoring coming from beside Krillin. He nudged Eighteen as he pointed at their sleeping daughter.

“So much for ten minutes huh?” He whispered with a grin.

“I knew she wouldn't be able to stay awake that long anyway.”

Krillin carefully lifted his daughter up, making sure she wouldn't wake up because it would be hard to get her back to sleep if she did.

“I'll take her upstairs.”

Eighteen gently kissed the back of Marron's head.

“I'll go make some coffee.” She said. She watched as Krillin walked up the stairs, smiling slightly. When he disappeared from her sight she retreated to the kitchen.

“Okay, we're gonna make this happen tonight, no room for failure anymore!” Eighteen said softly with a determined look. She went through the process of preparing everything. When it was time to put her latte skills to work, she let out an almost nervous sigh. She wanted it to go right so badly.

She bit her lip as she raised the small jug with the steamed milk and got to work.

Krillin stretched out and let out a yawn as he descended the stairs. He'd taken a quick shower after putting Marron to bed. He peeked into the living room which was deserted.

He went into the kitchen. Eighteen turned around when he stepped over the threshold.

“Hey, that coffee smells good.”

Eighteen nodded. She averted her gaze when she reached out to him with a steaming mug. Krillin frowned slightly at her strange behavior but took the cup from her no less. He looked down, fully expecting it either to be stirred or adorned by another formless blob.

His eyes widened considerably when he found a perfectly shaped heart instead.

“Wow! A heart? For me? How'd you do that, it's so lovely!” He said in total awe, cheeks coloring slightly pink as he looked up at Eighteen, but she wasn't looking at him. Krillin squinted his eyes at her, noticing a splash of pink before it disappeared.

“No need to do that.” He remarked, knowing Eighteen would know what he was talking about. He gently tugged at her sleeve. Eighteen looked down at him.

“Do you like it?” She asked softly.

“I love it!” Krillin gushed. “Is this why I had those strange blobs in my coffee? Were you practicing?”

Eighteen nodded, telling him how she had tried and failed to learn how to do it over the course of several days.

“I'm glad it worked this time.” She said with a small smile.

Krillin looked down at the steaming cup of coffee in his hands, the heart as prominent as ever.

“I don't want to drink it.” He said softly.

Eighteen raised a brow at that.

“There is nothing wrong with the coff....” But Krillin interrupted her.

“I know that it's just....this is so special to me. I don't think anyone has ever done something like this for me.” Krillin said softly.

“I..It's just a simple heart.” Eighteen muttered, she could feel her cheeks grow warm once more at the look of total adoration her husband was giving her.

“It's not 'just a simple heart'! Knowing how much you must've practiced just so you could do this for me, it means so much more to me. I'm totally awestruck!” Krillin said.

Eighteen forced her ever growing blush down. Her husband could be so sentimental at times, though she did endear that about him, it was a little embarrassing to know how much he valued whichever small gesture or thing she did for him. Not that she didn't appreciate it, it just made her feel a little self-conscious, something she still had never really gotten used to, even after all their years together. She smirked before she grabbed a small spoon and promptly stirred his coffee.

“Wha...Nooo why??” Krillin gasped.

“Stop being so dramatic.” Eighteen said taking the mug from his hands. She bent down and kissed his forehead.

“Besides, I can make it again, if you want me too.”

Krillin hopped onto the counter and pulled Eighteen closer to him. He gently kissed her before giving her an almost deviant stare.

“From now on I demand all my coffee to have a special Eighteen hearts in it, else I won't drink it.” He said wriggling his brows. Eighteen leaned her forehead against his.

“I guess you leave me no choice. I knew I would regret doing this.” She joked softly.

“You know it!” Krillin countered.

Eighteen laughed at that, closing her eyes when Krillin leaned in for another kiss.

Chapter Text

Krillin sighed, hanging his head in defeat.

“How? How do you always win these?” He whined half halfheartedly referring to yet another staring contest that had been won by Eighteen. No matter what he tried, what ever tactic he applied, he could not beat the cyborg, who was currently smirking smugly at him from across the table.

“You're too easily distracted.” She merely said. She gently tousled his short shaggy hair before taking her leave from the kitchen.

“Feel free to try again tomorrow!” She said with a grin over her shoulder before disappearing into the living room of Kame house. Krillin followed her movements with his eyes, feeling a slight blush settle on his face, unknowingly touching his hair. Then he realized what he was doing.

He groaned, slumping forward.

“It's not my fault you're so...” But he didn't finish the sentence. Instead he just closed his eyes as he hid his red face from view.

Eighteen had been living with him and Master Roshi for almost half a year now and it had been the best 6 months of his life as far as the small monk was concerned. Not that he would ever tell anyone that of course.

She had changed a lot over that period of time and they had formed quite a close friendship, something Krillin was very grateful for. He loved spending time with her, even if that meant he would find himself in strange situations at times.

It turned out that Eighteen had a sense for adventure and wanted to explore the world around her now that she got a second chance at living her life to the fullest. And no matter how much he loved going out and about with her, he preferred the quiet hours they would spend together at the island.

Those small hours where they'd just sit together on the roof and talk. Or play some of the board games Master Roshi possessed.

And sometimes Eighteen liked to challenge him to do something silly or even dangerous.

Like a game of truth or dare where he had almost spilled the beans of his ever-growing crush on her. Or when she had dared him to jump from the roof without using KI to land. He had almost eaten a face full of sand but had managed to keep his balance, huffing annoyed when Eighteen slowly but gracefully landed on her two feet next to him.

“You weren't supposed to use KI!”

“I didn't, I don't have KI remember? We didn't say anything about my artificial energy!”

“Cheater!”

Krillin chuckled at the memory, she hadn't lied, but he still felt cheated.

Lately though, Eighteen had presented him with a whole different challenge, one he had scoffed mockingly at when she suggested it to him.

“A staring contest? Really? That's so easy, prepare to lose!” He had bragged loudly, only to be eating his words not even a minute later while Eighteen laughed her head off at him. He had demanded a rematch.

And till this day he hadn't managed to beat her even once! Sure he did get better at holding her gaze longer at times but he always ended up losing.

It wasn't as if he could really help himself. He would bet the world no one would be able to beat her, not when she was staring at you so intensely with those bright blue eyes that made him feel like drowning in her gaze. It wasn't his fault that she was so damn beautiful that he just couldn't keep looking at her without his cheeks starting to burn up. That was the main reason he had to look away, he didn't want to embarrass himself.

Yes it was all her fault, and Krillin was determined to find a way to win at least once.

“Maybe I should meditate before starting one, clear my mind of distractions..?”

The next evening, Krillin walked into the living-room and plopped down next to Eighteen on the couch.

“What are we watching?”

Eighteen shrugged, tossing him the remote.

“I wasn't really watching anything, the old perv just finished his quiz..” She said holding up a fashion magazine and pointing her thumb towards the ceiling, indicating that Master Roshi had retired for the night.

Krillin nodded, he turned his attention to the TV, flipping through channels until he found a cooking show. He loved those since cooking was one of his hobbies. He relaxed against the plump cushions of the couch, completely immersed into the program.

He was startled when he felt a weight on his thighs. He raised a brow when he saw Eighteen's legs cover his. He raised a brow at her.

“Don't like it? Sit somewhere else, I was here first.” She said with shrug. Krillin could see the hint of a smirk on her face.

“It's fine.” He said, looking back to the TV. He hadn't realized how tense he was until Eighteen made a remark on it.

“You can relax you know, I'm not gonna kick you or anything.” She said sitting up.

“I wasn't thinking you were going too.” Krillin said hastily, holding his hands up in defense.

Eighteen raised a brow.

“Liar.”

“I swear!” Krillin sputtered. Eighteen narrowed her eyes at him. He gulped slightly as he looked back at her.

They both grew serious all of a sudden, having unconsciously launched into another of their staring matches. Krillin clenched his hands, determined not to look away or blink. His eyes were starting to water slightly and yet he refused to look away.

“I can do this all evening, you know.” Eighteen said leaning forward a little.

“Forget it! You're not winning this time.” Krillin hissed.

“You think? I mean I don't mind staring into your eyes, they're quite...lovely.” She said softly.

“Wha...?!” Krillin blinked, breaking his gaze momentarily.

“Gotcha!” Eighteen cackled, scooting back to her corner of the couch, holding up her hands when Krillin hurled one of the pillows towards her face.

“That was mean, you're such a cheater!” He gritted his teeth, desperately trying to push back the blush that threatened to come out. Her previous statement had completely caught him off guard.

“How? I wasn't lying. You do have nice eyes.” Eighteen said.

Krillin just shot her a look.

“I'm serious.”

“Oh...Thanks I guess. But you still cheated, catching me off guard like that.” Krillin stammered.

“Plus your eyes never get dry, how exactly is that fair to begin with anyway.” He murmured as an after thought.

Eighteen had picked up her magazine again.

“I can't help that, but I'll give you a one blink pass for next time if that makes you feel better.”

She draped her legs back over Krillin's thighs as she made herself comfortable once more.

“N..no that's not needed. I'll win on my own, you'll see!”

“Whatever you say.”

Krillin stared at the TV. Outwards he may seem calm, collected and totally into the program on the screen, but nothing could be further from the truth. Because his mind was a jumbled mess. Eighteen's words kept repeating over and over in his head. He knew he shouldn't read too much into them, but it made him a little giddy no less to know that she liked his eyes. He almost scoffed out loud, thinking to himself how much he sounded like a lovesick school girl.

He glanced at the blonde next to him. He almost wanted to tell her he thought the same of her eyes, but decided against it. He folded his arms, the TV program completely forgotten as he started hatching ideas as to how to beat Eighteen at her little game, once and for all.

A few weeks later, Krillin was seated cross-legged on the beach. His eyes were closed as he concentrated on his KI in meditation. Eighteen was seated next to him, just gazing out over the Ocean, sipping on some lemonade while she waited for Krillin to be done. It was almost time for sunset, the sky was already starting to turn with different hues of red and orange.

Krillin opened his eyes, inhaling and exhaling deeply one more time before taking a hold of his own glass of lemonade and sipping it gingerly.

“I thought you were going to miss the sunset, you almost looked like you were sleeping.” Eighteen teased, earning a frown from the small monk.

“I was meditating, there is a difference.” He said.

“I know that, I'm not stupid.”

Eighteen gave him a light nudge with her shoulder.

“I didn't say you were.” Krillin said nudging her back. They settled into a comfortable silence. Krillin loved these quiet moments, when it was just the two of them without a care in the world. Eighteen scooted a little closer so she could lean her shoulder against him. Krillin raised a brow at that but didn't say anything.

It seemed that lately, little gestures like these were becoming more frequent, Eighteen certainly didn't mind the close proximity between them nowadays. It almost made Krillin think something might be changing between the two of them. But he didn't dare to get his hopes up too much.

“The sun's down.” He said softly. The sky above them had turned to a deep dark blue and yet it was still very light out because of the large full moon. Usually they would retreat into the house when it got dark but for some reason neither felt like getting up.

Krillin turned his body.

“Alright, let's do this!” He proclaimed suddenly, earning a confused stare from Eighteen.

“Do what?”

Krillin grinned as he rubbed his hands together.

“Be prepared, tonight's going to be my night! I am finally going to defeat you!”

Eighteen turned her body as well so she was facing him.

“Staring contest?” She asked with a smirk. “Fine, bring it. It's always fun to see your pouty face after yet another loss anyway!”

“Not tonight!”

Krillin blinked his eyes rapidly for a few seconds while going over his plan in his mind. Yamcha had told him a sure fire way to win any staring contest and while the method was a little...risky for lack of better word, he still wanted to try it.
Besides what would it harm anyway? Eighteen cheated all the time as far as he was concerned. Though he wasn't sure if he could even consider it cheating to begin with.

“Ready when you are.” Eighteen said. She had folded her arms in front of her chest, there was a smug look on her face. Krillin chuckled softly to himself, knowing she was anticipating an easy victory again.

“Oh I am more than ready, ready to win!!” He exclaimed.

The beach grew silent once more when they settled into their contest. Krillin wrung his hands together, he didn't have a lot of time to put his plan into action. He had to act fast or else he would lose his courage altogether. He gulped slightly.

Eighteen raised a brow when Krillin leaned forward a little. She almost had to laugh at his attempt to distract her. She wouldn't lose. She could see he was struggling to hold her gaze.

Krillin licked his lips. He smiled slightly to himself before turning serious again. He leaned forward on his hands, never breaking eye contact with the cyborg in front of him. He inched closer and closer, until he was just mere inches away from her face.

Eighteen's eyes widened slightly when she saw a flash of determination in Krillin's eyes before he leaned in even more. Their faces were just mere inched away from each other, she could actually feel his breath on her skin.

She could not stop the blush rising in her cheeks, as her heart skipped a beat. From her view it almost looked as if Krillin was going to...she shook her head rapidly, preventing that thought from forming any further.

“YES!!”

She was startled by his loud exclamation.

“I can't believe it, it actually worked! I actually won!” Krillin was flashed her a victory sign.

“You tricked me!” She hissed when realization dawned upon her.

Krillin shrugged.
“Hey, I just took a page out of your book, I mean two can play at that game!” He said with a smug grin.

Eighteen frowned at him, regulating the temperature in her face quickly so he wouldn't notice the crimson on her cheeks.

She huffed when Krillin got up and did a little victory dance, waving his arms wildly while chanting the sentence 'I won' over and over again.

Krillin let out a yelp when suddenly he lost his balance and fell on the still warm sand.

“Oof, what the?” He said bewildered when he saw Eighteen's face above him. He felt his cheeks grow suspiciously warm when he realized she had tackled him to the ground and was now sitting on top of him, frowning down at him.

“H..hey don't be a sour loser.” He said meekly, throwing the words she told him so many times back to her.

“Cheater.”

“How, exactly? I didn't blink once.”

Eighteen was silent for a moment, there was a truth in his statement. Maybe she had read too much into his movements? It was a possibility and yet she had been sure he was about to kiss her right in that moment. And she had been startled to realize that she wouldn't have minded.

Krillin gulped softly when she bent down until her face was mere inches from his.

“E..eighteen?”

She averted her gaze for a moment, murmuring something inaudible.

“What did you say?” Krillin asked.

Eighteen raised her voice a little but wasn't look at him when she spoke again.

“I said...maybe you should man up and finish what you started.”

Krillin's eyes widened considerably at her statement. He averted his gaze when Eighteen looked back at him.

“I...uh..” He stammered. Eighteen almost chuckled at his completely red face, the colour had spread all the way into his hair.

She let out a sigh.

“Don't you think it's kind of cruel to toy with someone's feelings like that? Pretending you're going to kiss them just to win a stupid game?”

Krillin's gaze snapped back to her so fast that she was afraid he'd hurt his neck for a moment.

“F..feelings?”

The cyborg let out an almost frustrated sigh.

“Idiot.”

Krillin could practically feel his heart skip more than several beats when she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his mouth. She lingered, waiting patiently for him to come to his senses. It didn't take him too long, thankfully.

Eighteen smiled when she felt him wrap his arms around her to pull her close and kiss her back almost feverishly.

In a way, she had still won the game as far as she was concerned.

Chapter Text

She was standing motionless as the soft, and unusually cold, island breeze whipped around her. To anyone else, the slight current of air would have been enough to make them shiver and retreat inside.

But she wasn't fazed by it. Temperature changes were lost on her.

She blinked, looking up as the sky got darker. Clouds were forming right above her. Soon it would rain.

Android Eighteen kicked the sand in front of her feet almost angrily, that would just be the perfect setting for her mood. She wasn't even sure what had her feeling so aggravated.

She scoffed softly at herself, almost berating her choice of words.

She was an android, cold and emotionless, she didn't feel anything. Or so she would have people believe. Deep inside she knew this statement to be completely false and she hated it.

Because feeling was confusing, feeling was maddening and it had her going in circles, lost as to what she was supposed to do. She was all by herself. Her brother was missing. He might even be dead far as she knew. Ultimately, she figured, there was no purpose for her in life anymore. What would she do?

The sound of soft, hesitant, footsteps behind her interrupted her train of thought and made her frown heavily.

“What do you want?”

She could practically feel the person jump at the harshness in her tone.

“N.. nothing. Just, well it's going to rain so I thought ma....

“Leave me alone!” She said with a clenched jaw. It took a good few seconds before she heard the person turn away.

Eighteen opened the palm of her hand and sent a small energy wave into the Ocean. The water before her had turned from tranquil to wild, with waves crashing on the shore line, soaking her feet.

She was wrong, she wasn't completely alone, but she didn't expect anything from the occupants of the small pink house behind her.

Sure the bald monk had offered her a place to stay a few months back, but she figured it was just out of pity. She had no one else to turn too or anywhere to go, after all.

Eighteen sent another wave of artificial energy into the water as the rain started to fall, first softly but steadily gaining momentum.

She stubbornly crossed her arms in front of her chest, looking down when something touched her leg. Apparently Krillin had left her an umbrella which was now steadily being dragged away by the wind that had picked up. She watched it skid over the sand until it disappeared in the water.

“Serves him right, I don't need his pity.” She said softly to herself, but already finding it hard to keep up her facade when she thought of him.

Krillin had been nothing but courteous to her from the moment she moved in, which couldn't have been said from the other two occupants of the house. But they had learned their lesson quickly and stopped bothering her.

He was really something else. He didn't overstep his boundaries like the others had done. In fact, Krillin respected her and stayed out of her way most of the time. And while she relished in that fact, in some kind of weird twist of fate, his hesitancy and guarded behavior around her also set her on edge.

Eighteen snorted, knowing that she hadn't exactly been the friendliest to be around. But something in his attitude around her rubbed her the wrong way. It was infuriating because she knew he was only doing what she expected him to do. But she couldn't help but think it almost seemed as if he was frightened by her.

He'd tried to engage her though, from time to time. He would try and strike up a conversation which was mostly one sided. Eighteen usually didn't say anything aside from maybe a grunt here and there. Or he would try and coax her to eat or drink something, knowing full well she didn't need too. She had yelled her head off at him the first time he offered. But despite that he still came back and tried.

She had to admit, eating solid food wasn't bad, and his cooking was more than decent. But she made sure she didn't grew too accustomed to it. After all, she hadn't planned on staying long anyway.

But that backfired, since she was still here. On this stupid small island in the middle of the ocean, with its stupid palm tree and stupid pink house.

Eighteen glanced behind her. She saw a shadow moving away from the window. She ignored it, knowing full well that Krillin had started to worry about her by now as she stood there in the relentless rain.

Something she still didn't understand about the small monk, if he was scared of her then why did he also seem to care for her to some degree? Always trying to make her comfortable, never judging her despite who, no, what she was.

His behavior confused her and angered her yet his presence was also soothing in some kind of weird way. And sometimes she found herself wanting to seek him out, just to have a moment of peace in her own mind.

She couldn't stand it.

These different emotions and feelings, she didn't need them. She had been fine before she got eaten by Cell. Now her whole world was turned upside down and the inner turmoil was slowly getting to be too much. It wouldn't be long before she simply wouldn't be able to hold it in anymore and snap. All this frustration and anger, it needed an outlet but she didn't know how to deal with it.

Eighteen shook her head slowly, then made her way back to the house.

When she stepped in, she was greeted by Krillin who held out a towel. Wordlessly she took it from him.

“I could make you some hot tea to...” He trailed off when he saw the look she shot him.

“Never mind. Goodnight, Eighteen.” He said softly.

Despite herself, Eighteen felt something stir within. She stubbornly turned away from him, drying off her wet hair as best as she could. Then she closed her eyes and let out a frustrated sigh.

Krillin was almost out of the room when she spoke up.

“Tea would be nice.”

He smiled slightly to himself, making sure the soaked cyborg didn't see it. He nodded, turning back towards her and walking past the archway in the wall into the kitchen. He took one of Master Roshi's kettles and filled it with water to boil.

He nervously bit his lip when Eighteen followed him.

“Maybe you should change into some dry clothes while waiting for the water to boil?” He suggested.

Eighteen glared at him but found that he had a point. She turned away and disappeared upstairs.

Krillin released the breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Eighteen could be so intimidating at times, a fact that she maybe wasn't aware of herself...but Krillin shook that thought away.

She was very well aware of it.

He hadn't expected things to be all happy and smiles when he first found her and invited her into his Master's home. But he hadn't expected for things to turn out the way they did. Eighteen's mood lately seemed to have gone from bad to worse. He could sense she was struggling with herself but there was noting he could do to help.

She wouldn't let him.

A soft whistling sound shook him from his thoughts and he busied himself with preparing two cups of tea, figuring he might as well join her if she let him. He poured the tea and placed her cup on the kitchen table while he took a seat on the other side. He wrapped both his hands around the steaming cup of liquid as he waited for Eighteen to come back down and join him.

Eighteen stepped into the kitchen, feeling slightly better now that she was dry. She silently took a seat across from Krillin but didn't interact with him. Instead she took a careful sip of her tea.

Krillin kept his gaze on the swirling liquid in his cup. The silence around him was a little uncomfortable. He didn't really know what to do. He could strike up a conversation, but knew she probably wouldn't engage in it anyway. There was no sense in talking to yourself.

After a few more minutes of silence, he dared to look up at the person in front of him. Eighteen had her gaze averted, watching the raindrops slide down the large glass window the kitchen possessed. She was slowly sipping on her tea. Krillin was glad to see some colour returning to her features.

“I let your umbrella get pulled into the ocean.” She said softly, startling Krillin who hadn't realized he had been staring at her longer than he intended. He cleared his throat.

“Oh..uhm, well that's okay. We have plenty.” He answered.

Eighteen shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She set aside her now half empty teacup and fixed her gaze on him. Krillin could practically feel her eyes on him, scrutinizing everything that he was in that moment. He swallowed some tea as he carefully looked up to meet her gaze.

Her stare was cold, she was frowning at him but she didn't say anything. Krillin clasped his hands together.

“Don't you ever get mad?” She suddenly asked. The question caught him off guard.

“What?” He stammered.

“You heard me, I essentially tossed your umbrella away, and counting the other things I broke of yours over time...and yet you always seem to take it in stride. Never losing your temper over it. What is it with you?”

Krillin licked his lips as he thought of an accurate response. It was true, she had broken quite some stuff in the house when she first came to live with them, but that was largely because of Roshi and his habits than anything else. He never thought she did it on purpose or anything.

“Well, I guess I don't really value stuff all that much.” He said with a small smile. “It's something that remained with me from life as a monk.”

Eighteen scoffed at him.

“You're an idiot.” She said.

“I guess?” Krillin said with a shrug.

Eighteen unfolded her arms and leaned forward on the table suddenly. Krillin couldn't help the small flinch as she fixed her gaze upon him. He saw something flash in her eyes as they widened just a fraction.

“You are scared of me.”
Eighteen's eyes seemed to burn right through him as Krillin gulped softly.

“N..no, of course not.” He said after a moment of tensed silence.

“Liar.” Eighteen said, thoughts from earlier coming back to her but somehow she just couldn't let go this time.

She stood up, pushing the table away from them. Krillin hastily got up too, almost tripping over the chair behind him when she advanced on him. He kept walking backwards, eyes fixed upon the cyborg before him. Her expression was blank, but he couldn't help the slight feeling of dread that coiled in his stomach. He swallowed a small lump when his back came in contact with the wall and her arms planted themselves firmly on either side of his head.

He was trapped.

Eighteen looked down on the monk before her.

“Liar.” She hissed once again.

Krillin returned her stare with one of his own. But even if her face didn't betray anything, her eyes did. He could see anger in them, frustration aimed at him and yet, there was something else too. Confusion? Hurt? He wasn't sure.

But, taking a deep breath, he straightened his back, lifting his hands to grab a hold of Eighteen's wrists. He could see a flash of surprise come over her features, even if it was just for a few seconds.

He scowled up at her as he pushed forward, causing her to step backwards slightly so her hands weren't leaning on the wall behind him anymore.

“I'm not scared of you.” He said in what he hoped was a confident voice.

He carefully brought his hands down, still holding onto Eighteen's wrists. He held them in between them, fingers flexing nervously against her cool skin. Even if she felt it, she didn't say anything. She was just looking at him.

“Look, I'm not sure what you were trying to do, but it's not working.”

Eighteen roughly pulled her hands away from him.

“Well you certainly act like it all the damn time! What? Scared I'm going to turn on you and kill you? Aren't you all waiting on that to happen?” She exploded angrily.

Krillin's eyes widened at her words, he had no idea where she got that idea, he certainly never gave an indication of such a thing happening.

“What? I never..”

But Eighteen silenced him with a wave of her hand and turned away from him.

“Forget it!”

She closed her eyes momentarily. She had shocked herself with that statement. Part of her wondered if this was why she felt so out of it lately, if this had been the underlying reason for her frustration and anger at herself, at Krillin, at the whole world.

Maybe she was the one who didn't trust herself to turn a new leaf. Maybe that's why she was so inadequate at adapting to her new life, so weak in dealing with all that was threatening to drown her within herself. Then realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

She was petrified.

This second chance given to her by the man standing behind her, she didn't know how to deal with it by herself. And although he had offered his help in more ways than one, she had just pushed him away in her anger at herself.

“Eighteen?” Krillin softly said, taking a step towards her.

“I'm not sure why you would think such a thing. You're not the person you apparently still see yourself as. I'm no...”

But Krillin's sentence was cut short by a soft noise that startled him. He very carefully leaned forward and reached for the cyborg in front him. She still had her back towards him, but as soon as he gently touched her shoulder, she turned around and crashed into him. Krillin stumbled a few steps backward by the sheer force of it.

He stayed perfectly still as Eighteen clung to him, her whole body was shaking and Krillin realized that his suspicion was true.

Eighteen was crying.

He gingerly wrapped an arm around her sobbing frame. When she didn't push him away, he wrapped his other arm around her and held her to the best of his ability. He could feel her hands clench uncontrollably on his back, bunching the fabric of his shirt in her grip while her tears soaked his shoulder.

Krillin gently rubbed her back with one of his hands all the while whispering what he hoped were reassuring words to calm her down a bit.

The blonde clung to him for dear life it seemed and part of Krillin was becoming increasingly worried for her well being.

After a few moments, Eighteen took a deep breathe, her sobs subsiding somewhat as she turned her face into the crook of Krillin's neck, her hair partly falling over his shoulder. She inhaled his scent, it had a calming effect on her. She could feel him rubbing small circles on her back, but didn't understand the words he was saying, she didn't need too. She sniffled as her sobs stopped completely.

Krillin felt her calm down in his arms and let out a small sigh of relief, he wasn't very used to people crying on his shoulder or consoling them for that matter, but so far he seemed to have done a decent job for Eighteen's crying had stopped. She was still holding him tightly, he could feel the warmth of her breath on his skin. It tickled and made him blush just slightly though he tried shrugging it off.

After a moment of silence, Krillin carefully pulled away just enough so he could get as glimpse of Eighteen's face. Her tear-stained cheeks were flushed lightly.

“Are you okay now?” He asked softly to which Eighteen gave a small nod.

Yet she didn't let go of him. She merely turned her face away from him, resting her cheek on his shoulder. Krillin could feel his legs and back start to ache a little from his slightly backwards stance. Slowly he sank to the floor taking Eighteen with him. To his surprise she still didn't let go, instead she crawled into his lap, keeping a tight hold on him. Krillin willed the blush down that threatened to stain his cheeks a second time, she was practically straddling him and still hiding her face.

Then a thought struck him and he couldn't help the small smile on his face.

“You don't have to be embarrassed, everyone needs a good cry every once in a while.” He said softly.

“Shut up.” Came her response.

Eighteen could feel him chuckle against her. Now that she had calmed down, shame started to kick in from losing her control like that. If Krillin noticed, he didn't say anything else and she was grateful for that, it was hard enough to come to terms with herself over it.
Part of her couldn't fathom just how things had turned out the way they did and yet here she was, on the floor in the arms of the small monk who had rescued her in more ways than he probably was aware of.

Eighteen almost snorted at that train of thought but couldn't deny the truth in those words. Part of her was relieved, feeling a little lighter now that she had managed to at least start to release some of the turmoil that resided within. Krillin's arms were back around her as he hugged her lightly, she could feel the warmth radiate of his body against hers. And while his touch was comforting, it was also a little awkward now that she fully registered just how much she was leaning on him.

She regulated the temperature in her face before finally leaning back. She got up from his lap, but instead of walking away as Krillin had expected, she sat back down next to him.

She let out a sigh.

“Don't worry, this stays between you and me.” Krillin joked softly.

He pulled up a knee so he could rest his arm on it.

“And I guess I haven't been completely honest, I stand by what I said though, I am not scared of you, but you do intimidate me a little sometimes.” He said with a chuckle.

“But that wasn't really what all this was about, was it?” He said giving a small wave of his hand. He turned serious as he fixed his gaze on the cyborg next to him, she didn't return it.

“About what you said, please you have to know that none of us think of you that way. All we...well all I want to do is help you.”

Eighteen sighed, pulling her knees up and wrapping her arms around them.

“What am I supposed to do?” She asked suddenly.

“My brother is gone, I'm all alone. It's so hard to comprehend all that happened. My whole life as I know it, is a mess. Created by some maniac only to become food for some kind of monster. And then finding that I am still here after all of that and having this opportunity at a second chance of life. To live my life the way I want too and yet I am utterly lost.” Eighteen rested her forehead on her knees, hiding her face.
“But you're not alone.” Krillin gently nudged her shoulder. Eighteen looked up and locked her gaze on him.

“You don't have to do all of this by yourself. I'm here too as well as the others, we all want to support]] you. I can only imagine how confusing everything is for you right now, but I'll try my best to guide you through it. To help you find your place in this world. As for your brother, he's not gone.” Krillin rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“I am still completely sure he got resurrected. We can search for him. He has to be somewhere in this world. I'll help you in any way I can.”

“But why?” Eighteen asked softly, She almost winched at the sincere look her gave her.

“Because you're someone I care about.” He simply said.

Eighteen felt the beginnings of guilt start to gnaw at her insides as she thought back to all the times she treated him harshly or ignored him. Krillin seemed to sense her unease for he gently squeezed her shoulder.

“Don't worry, a few bad moods won't deter me from becoming a friend to you.” He said with a smile. “If you let me, that is.”

Eighteen almost chuckled at that. She playfully punched his shoulder, albeit a little harder than she meant too.

After a few more moments of silence Eighteen let out a sigh.

“You really think I can turn my life around, Krillin? That I can be someone other than I'm programmed to be?”

Krillin nodded.

“Yes, I do. You already proved you're not who Gero wanted you to be, now you just got to find yourself so you can take advantage of life to the fullest.”

“You sound awkwardly wise right now.” Eighteen remarked.

Krillin grinned.

“I have my moments.”

Eighteen stood up, Krillin followed her example. Together they shoved the table and chairs back in place. Then she made her way to the stairs.

She halted her step momentarily as she turned towards Krillin who was watching her with a smile on his face.

“This stays between us, or else.” She said. Then she frown disappeared and was replaced by a genuine smile.

“Of course! I said so didn't I? Also, I'd like to live a little longer you know.”

Eighteen walked up the stairs but stopped once more half way up.

“Krillin?”

“Yea?”

She regarded him for a moment. It wasn't going to be easy, but if he was by her side, she reckoned she would be okay.

“Thank you.”

Chapter Text

Eighteen was seated on the beach of Kame Island, keeping a watchful eye on her daughter who was building sandcastles near the shoreline. Even after moving to the city, they still visited the small island often because it was so quiet and serene. A good place to take a breather.

She glanced back at the front of the house where Krillin and Master Roshi were playing a game of cards and from the looks of it her husband was losing...again. She grinned softly to herself as she turned back to watching Marron.

Eighteen let out a small sigh as she observed the small girl leap away from the small waves time and time again, sandcastle seemingly forgotten as she yelled out in glee when the cold water managed to touch her bare feet.

In just a few days time, Marron would turn six. And while Eighteen was happy she grew up to be a smart and happy child, sometimes she wished time would stand still for a moment.

Marron turned towards her with a smile.

“Mama, look what Turtle found for me!”

Eighteen stood up and made her way over, crouching down to observe what she was holding in her hands.

It was a fairly large seashell that was covered in little barnacles and had some bright coloured streaks all over it.

“Isn't it pretty? I'm gonna put it on my shelf in my room.”

“It really is.” Eighteen agreed. She stood up and took her daughter's hand.

“Speaking of your room, it's about time we went home. Let's gather your stuff and get you changed out of your swimmers.”

“Okay, bye Turtle!” Marron yelled over her shoulder with a small wave. Umigame nodded his head in response.

“Time to go?” Krillin asked when they stepped onto the wooden deck of Kame House. Eighteen nodded in reply.

“Alright, I'll gather our stuff and wait here till you're done changing.”

A little while later they all said goodbye to Master Roshi and got into their air car before taking off. Not even five minutes into the flight home, Marron fell asleep.
Krillin smiled as he glanced at her in the rear-view mirror.

“She is knocked out, pretty sure she'll be sleeping soundly through the night.” He said softly. Eighteen nodded.

“Which is a good thing, she needed to let out some of her energy anyway.”

Krillin steered a little to the left, it wouldn't be long before they had to touch down and drive the remainder of the way home.

“Did you order the cake she wanted for her birthday yet?” Eighteen asked.

“Yup, that's all taken care of. Now all we need is a present and to be honest I have no idea what she wants aside from the little things you already got her. I asked her but she said she didn't know yet. Maybe you'll have more luck on that.” Krillin said with a chuckle. He turned into their neighborhood.

“Home sweet home!”

“Finally.”

Eighteen got their beach bag while Krillin gently shook Marron awake.

“Wake up sleepyhead, we're home.”

Marron stretched lazily before getting out of the car, making sure not to drop her seashell.

She made a beeline up the stairs to her room as soon as Krillin unlocked the front door. Eighteen shook her head as she followed her daughter upstairs.

Krillin busied himself in the kitchen, preparing a light evening meal. It was a little later than their usual dinnertime, the sky was already turning with the colours of the setting sun.

Eighteen put their swim clothes and towels in the washer before heading to Marron's room. She stood silently in the door for a moment until Marron noticed her.

“I put it right in the middle, see?” She said pointing to one of the shelves next to her bed. It mostly held her storybooks aside from a few small knick-knacks here and there.

“Looks good.” Eighteen remarked. She gathered some night clothes and motioned for Marron to follow her.

“We have a little time for a bath before dinner, let's go.”

“Okay!”

After their bath, Marron was seated on her parent's bed while Eighteen was gently combing her hair. It had grown longer than her own by now and part of her wondered if she needed a haircut.

“Can you braid my hair?” Marron asked.

Eighteen nodded.

“Yes, and while I do that why don't you tell me what you want for your birthday? Your daddy says you didn't know yet.”

Marron rubbed her chin, wrinkling her forehead as she pretended to think deeply about what she wanted. In reality she already knew but didn't exactly know how to ask for it. When her hair was finished, she turned around and climbed in her mother's lap, observing her for a few moments. Eighteen raised a brow at the intensity of her daughter's stare.

“What is it? Do I have something on my face?” She joked.

Marron shook her head.

“I know what I want for my birthday now.” She said softly.

“Alright, what is it?”

“I want those, just like you.” The small girl said with a smile, softly touching the small silver rings in her mother's ears.

Eighteen raised a brow at that.

“You want your ears pierced?”

Marron nodded eagerly.

“Please? Can I? Pleeeaaasseee?” She said clasping her hands together.

“Other girls in my class have their ears pierced too.” She added for extra emphasis.

Eighteen chuckled at that.

“Well, how about we go downstairs and tell daddy about it and see what he thinks?”

“Okay!” Before Eighteen could even get up, Marron had already dashed from her lap, down the stairs into the kitchen where Krillin was finishing up the last of their meal preparations.

“Papa guess what, guess what?!”

“What?”

“I know what I want for my birthday!”

Krillin turned the stove off and turned towards her to give her his undivided attention.

“And?”

“And I want earrings just like Mama has!”

Krillin was surprised, he hadn't expected an answer like that. He glanced towards the table where Eighteen had taken a seat. She just smiled.

“It's what she wants.”

“Can I?”

He turned back to his daughter.

“Well, I guess we can do that if you really want it.” He said picking her up.

“But you have to be absolutely sure about it okay? I mean getting your ears pierced is a big step! There are still a few days before your birthday to think it over.”

“I will, but I already am.” Marron said with a serious look. Krillin had to stifle his laughter at it.

“Okay, well let's eat. I don't know about you, but I am hungry!”

Later that evening, the household had quieted down, Marron was soundly asleep in her bed while Eighteen was seated on the couch in the living room, She was on a laptop. Krillin joined her with two steaming cups of tea which he gently placed on the table.

“What are you doing?”

“Research.”

Krillin lifted his brow at that. He scooted closer, resting his head on her shoulder so he could view the screen. Eighteen was scrolling through a list of Tattoo shops nearby.

“Why are you looking at Tattoo parlors?”

“To see which one also does piercings so we can go get Marron's ears pierced.” Eighteen said. She clicked another link.

“I thought they did that at one of the malls we have?”

Eighteen shook her head.

“They do, but I don't want her to go there. I've read up on it. It's safer to go to a professional than to those mall places where they use equipment that isn't cleaned properly.” She said.

“I don't want her first experience to end in tears because of an infection or worse.”

“Makes sense, but are kids even allowed in shops like that?”

Eighteen clicked a few other links.

“There is actually only one shop that pierces kid's ears and it's on the other side of the city.” Eighteen said while browsing said shop's webpage. From the pictures it looked like a clean and professional environment. Even Krillin was impressed.

“Isn't there an age limit though?” He asked.

“I don't know, let's see.” Eighteen clicked on a different section and scrolled down.

“Yes there is, looks like Marron is lucky. They only pierce kid's ears 6 and up apparently.”

She read some of the text out loud. After browsing the site some more and jotting down the address, Eighteen closed the laptop. She took a sip of her tea which had cooled down considerable by now.

“I'll go by there tomorrow and check it out first before making an appointment.” She said.

“Sounds like a plan. Let me know how it goes. I'll be on patrol tomorrow so I'll check my phone periodically.”

**

The next Saturday, Eighteen quietly made her way up the stairs, into Marron's room. Her daughter was still fast asleep, spread out all over the bed with the covers on the floor. She shook her head at that as she quietly opened the curtains. It was still early but the sun was already out. It promised to be a nice day.

She sat down to gently shake Marron awake.

“Wake up, birthday girl.” She coaxed softly.

Marron groaned, turning away from her. Eighteen snorted at that.

“I swear you and your father are the exact same.” She said to herself. She rocked Marron a little more firmly this time.

“Time to get up!”

She carefully lifted her into a sitting position, holding on so she wouldn't fall back.

Marron slowly opened her eyes and let out a yawn.

“It's too early, Mama.” She muttered.

“It's never too early on your birthday!”

At that Marron perked up immediately.

“I forgot!” She said.

“How can you forget your own birthday?” Eighteen joked.

Marron shrugged. “Dunno, I just did.”

“Let's go downstairs, your dad made you your favourite breakfast.”

“Chocolate pancakes with strawberries?”

Eighteen nodded.

“With whipped cream?”

“I don't know about that, that's not really a breakfast food is it?”

“But today is a special day.” Marron said

“That's true, but you won't know until you go downstairs. Come on.”

Marron's eyes widened when she stepped into the living room, there were balloons and streamers everywhere.

“It's so pretty!”

She turned when Krillin emerged from the kitchen.

“There she is! I was wondering if you were just going to sleep all day!” He joked.

“Of course not!” Marron said. She giggled when Krillin gave her a hug and ruffled her hair.

“Happy birthday, firefly! Ready for some breakfast?”

“Yep!”

They all sat down at the table. Marron was delighted when Krillin made a 6 out of whipped cream on her pancakes. Eighteen just watched the scene before her while sipping some coffee. She wasn't hungry.

“These are so good.”

“I'll take that as a compliment.” Krillin offered Eighteen some strawberries but she declined.

After breakfast was over, Marron got to unwrap the gifts that were waiting for her on the living room table which consisted of some new summer dresses she had begged Eighteen to get her when in the mall one day as well as some new storybooks and a toy or two.

“Thank you, I love all of it!” She said giving her parents a big hug.

“But that's not all, you have something you needed which are the new clothes, something to read and something to play with. But what was it that you really wanted?” Eighteen asked.

“Earrings.” Marron said without hesitation.

“Well then I suggest we go and get you dressed so we can go get that done, don't you think?” Krillin chimed in.

“Really?” Marron asked with widened eyes.

“Really.”

“Yes!!” Marron jumped up with glee.

“Right now? Can we go right now?”

“Do you really want people to see you in your pajamas?” Krillin joked.

“No!” Marron said laughing. “That's silly! Can I wear one of my new dresses?”

Eighteen nodded.

“Which one?”

Marron had to think about that for a little while before deciding on the light blue one.

After getting dressed, Eighteen put her hair up in a bun so it wouldn't get in the way later. Krillin had already cleaned up and was waiting for them by the door.

The drive to their destination was a bit longer than anticipated because of traffic. Marron had quieted down in the backseat. She was holding her favourite small plush rabbit that Seventeen had gotten her a while back.

“Will Uncle Seventeen come by today?” She asked.

“Yes, he will as well as your aunt and cousins. And of course everyone else.”

“Yay, that's going to be fun.” She said with a small smile.

“We're here.” Krillin announced. He parked up the street. Marron grabbed a hold of his hand. All of a sudden she felt a little nervous though she tried not to show it when they stopped in front of a small building.

Eighteen went in first. She was immediately greeted by a tall woman with short, bright bubblegum pink hair. Her arms were covered in colourful tattoos and she had several piercings and earrings.

Marron couldn't help but stare at her in awe.

“Hey there, right on time.” The woman shook both Krillin and Eighteen's hand before crouching down to Marron's height.

“And this must be the birthday girl!” She said with a smile.

Marron nodded shyly, stepping a little closer to her dad.

“I'm Ira, what's your name?”

“Marron.”

“That's a pretty name.” Ira said. She stood back up and motioned for them to follow her to a room in the back. Krillin was impressed as he looked around. The shop was immaculately clean. There were a few other people in the shop and soft music was playing over the speaker system.

Ira led them into a small, brightly painted room that had paintings of butterflies and flowers all over the walls.

“This is my special room, just for kids like you who come here for the first time. Do you like it?”

Marron nodded, she hadn't let go of Krillin's hand yet and he could feel her squeeze a little. He figured she was getting quite nervous by now. He pulled her into his lap as he sat down in one of the comfortable chairs the room possessed. Eighteen sat down next to him while Ira went over the procedure with them. Eighteen already knew this since she had visited the shop beforehand.

“It's okay to be a little nervous, but I promise you, you'll only feel a realllllly small pinch and it will be over. Wanna come sit in this big chair?”

Marron shared a look with her parents before resolutely hopping of her dads lap. She climbed in the chair and sat back.

“Can I hold my rabbit?” She asked softly. Eighteen didn't miss the hitch in her voice. She smiled at Krillin, both knowing Marron was trying her best to be very brave.

“Of course! And guess what? I got something for you to take the nerves off a little bit. How about a lollipop?”

Marron nodded.

“I've got strawberry, lemon or grape flavoured ones.”

“I want strawberry, that's my favourite.” Marron said.

“Strawberry it is!”

Ira unwrapped the sucker and gave it to Marron who happily stuck it in her mouth.

“So first you have to choose which earrings you want. I've got a few here.” Ira held out a small tray with packaged earrings.

“These are in sterile packaging and made of titanium so the risk of infection is really small.” She explained to Krillin and Eighteen before turning back to Marron who was peering at the earrings in concentration.

“I want that one, those look like Mama's earrings.” Marron said pointing at the tray.

“Oh nice choice!” Ira said, she set the tray aside and grabbed a rolling table.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes!” Marron said.

Ira laughed at the determination in her voice.

“Okay then, let's begin with your right ear. Turn your head a little so I can clean it.” Marron did as she was told. She looked at her parents who gave her a thumbs up.

Krillin couldn't deny getting a little nervous himself when Ira finished cleaning Marron's ears and marking the spot where the needle would pierce her skin. The sight of the needle didn't really help. It looked really sharp.

“Okay now comes the hard part, Marron. Take a really deep breath when I tell you too okay? You might feel just a little pinch but it will be over in a second!”

Marron nodded, holding on to her rabbit a little tighter and squeezing her eyes shut in anticipation.

“Okay here we go, deep breath!”

Marron did as she was told, biting her lip when she felt the small pinch of pain the pink haired woman had described. After doing her other ear, Ira leaned back and discarded the needles she had been using into a special marked bin.

“All done! Look at you, you're so awesome!” She said.

She held up a small mirror so Marron could look at her ears. She was smiling broadly as she turned her head sideways to get a good look at her pierced ears.

“I did it! Look at my cool earrings!” She said turning to her parents.

“Really cool!” Krillin agreed.

Eighteen nodded.

“Well done.”

Marron was practically beaming with pride when she hopped off the chair to join them again.

“Alright, now you got to take good care of your ears for a little while okay? Don't touch the earrings without washing your hands first and mommy and daddy will have to clean them once or twice a day with this special lotion.” Ira said holding up a small bottle of liquid. She handed it to Eighteen.

“She can switch these starter earring for different ones after six weeks, the cleaning is most Important in the first week. After that you can go to cleaning once a day or every other day. It's highly unlikely but if you do see signs of infections, make sure she doesn't develop a fever, small kids sometimes do. Take her to a doctor if that's the case. And that's about it, let's go back to the front.”

They followed her to the front desk where Krillin paid before they said their goodbyes.

“You were amazing today, Marron. I hope you have the best birthday!” Ira handed her some stickers.

“Thank you,” Marron said with a smile. She waved until the door closed behind them.

“They look really good on you.” Eighteen remarked as she took her daughter's hand.

“You were a little scared weren't you?”

“Just a little bit! But now I am happy because I have earrings and they are super cool!” Marron climbed into the backseat of the car. She had the urge to reach up and touch them but didn't.

“Mama, can I have your little mirror, please?”

Eighteen chuckled softly, sharing a look with Krillin when she handed it to Marron who promptly spend the car ride looking at her ears.

“We've got to go pick up your cake and then we'll go home. Everyone is coming over soon.” Krillin said glancing in the rear-view mirror.

“Okay, I can't wait for everyone to see my ears! Trunks and Goten are going to be so surprised! And now I also match with Uncle Seventeen.! This is going to be the best birthday ever!” Marron said with a happy sigh.

“Oh and Mama?”

“Hm?”

“When I get older, you know what?”

“What?”

“I'm gonna get pink hair just like Ira, did you see that? It was so awesome!”

Krillin almost choked at the expression on his wife's face before they just smiled at each other. Yes, sometimes they wished Marron wouldn't grow up so fast, but at the same time they couldn't wait to see who she would become as she grew older.

Chapter Text

“Oi, you okay man?” Yamcha asked with a small chuckle as he poked his friend repeatedly in the shoulder and back.

Said friend was slumped over the table with his face hidden from view by his folded arms in front of him.

“Leave me be, life has no meaning anymore.” Came a muffled response.

“Oh geesh Krillin, dramatic much?”

Krillin sighed, stubbornly turning his back to Yamcha. He was in a sulky mood after realizing that tickets to 'the concert of the century' had been sold out within 10 minutes. He had waited up all night and refreshed the ticket site repeatedly until the sale started at midnight too! But it seemed he hadn't been the only one to do so apparently.

“Ugh why me? Why can't I ever catch a break?!”

“A break from what?”

Bulma tossed her book bag on the floor next to the large round table her friends were seated at before taking a seat herself.

“Life. Everything.” Krillin sighed.

Bulma raised a brow at that. Taking a bite from her sandwich she looked to Yamcha for further explanation.

“Don't mind mopey here, he just missed his chance to get a ticket to the Red Ribbon 'Droids concert. He waited up all night too for them to go on sale. I keep telling him his obsession with that band is unhealthy but does he ever listen? Of course not.”

Bulma raised her brows

“Ah right, I heard tickets were gone in ten minutes. Bummer.” She said with a shrug.

Krillin sat up straight, poking at his own uneaten school lunch miserably.

“It's not an obsession, they are just really that good! And we almost never get big name bands like them in our area. It just sucks that this might've been the only time I'd been able to see them live, because I love their music.”

“And their lead singerrrrrr.” Yamcha added in a singsong voice.

“Shut up.” Krillin retorted. He grimaced, he wasn't wrong of course but that was really not the only reason he loved this particular band so much.

“Hey, can't blame ya! She is really easy on the eyes if you catch my drift. Way out of your league though.”

Bulma snorted at Yamcha's remark.

“Plus she is like way older than us too, isn't she?”

“Actually only by three years, she and her brother turned 20 not too long ago.” Krillin said absentmindedly. He raised a brow when Bulma and Yamcha gave him a knowing look.

“What? I like to read a lot.” He said in defense of himself already knowing his friends wouldn't buy it.

“Yea, sure.” Bulma snorted.

Krillin sighed

“Anyway, I have two hours of listening to Mr Seru* talking about himself instead of teaching us what he's supposed too AND extra band practice. As if this day couldn't get any worse!”

His friends gave him a sympathetic look at that.

“Have fun! Don't forget that we are supposed to meet up with Chichi later! She said her dad made a new dish we just have to try and who can resist free food?” Yamcha said referring to Paozu's, the restaurant Chichi's father owned.

“Right! I'll be there.” With a wave of his hand, he disappeared through the double doors of the cafeteria.

When he stepped into Paozu's a few hours later, most of his friends were already there.

“There you are, what took you so long! These guys didn't want to start eating without you, I'm starving!”

Krillin chuckled at Goku's indignant look.

“Sorry, got held up after practice.”

He took a seat next to his best friend, who was actually more like a brother to him if anything.

“So what are were trying out this time?”

“Beats me! Chichi won't tell us.” Bulma said with a shrug.

Krillin winched slightly at that answer. The last time their friend had been so mysterious about the food she was going to serve, he learned he had been eating mountain lizard and some kind of beetle soup. He did not want a repeat of that even if the food tasted pretty good.

“Alright I hope y'all hungry! We've prepared a feast!”

Krillin shared a look with an eager Goku when Ox King and Chichi set several dishes on the large table in front of them.

“Oh it smells so good!” Goku said closing his eyes.

“Well, dig in!” Chichi said with a smile. “We're thinking of making these dishes part of our new and revamped menu so it's really important to get your opinions on these! My dad is counting on us!” She joined them at the table.

“Exactly what are we eating anyway?” Krillin asked wary.

“Don't worry about that, it's nothing gross I promise!”

“Yea, Krillin. You better start eating or it will all be gone! It's really good!” Goku added with his mouth full. Krillin hastily scooped some of the food onto his plate knowing just how fast and how much he could eat in one sitting.

“Goku's right, it's delicious!” Yamcha said, going in for seconds. “Specially these little things!” He held up what looked like mini spring rolls. Krillin got one for himself and carefully bit into it. He could feel his face heat up drastically when the unexpected spiciness hit his throat.

“M..milk!!” He croaked out.

“Ah my bad! I forgot to warn ya!” Yamcha said with a smirk which told Krillin he wasn't sorry in the slightest.

Chichi handed him a tall glass of milk with a look of concern on her face when she watched him down it in one go.

“More!”

“Too spicy?” She asked, already jotting down some notes in her little notepad to go over with her father later.

“Nah, it's just him.” Goku assured her.

Krillin coughed, the burning sensation finally subsiding somewhat.

“Goku's right, it's just me. I can't handle spicy stuff very well, maybe you could have a milder option available? But the rest of these dishes are pretty tasty though!”

“Hm, not bad, not bad! I'll keep your suggestion in mind.” Chichi said with a smile.

Bulma was about to say something when her phone went off, startling everyone because it was so loud.

“Sorry.” She said hastily turning the volume down when more texts came in. Yamcha rolled his eyes.

Krillin wiped his mouth, he'd had enough food for now. He leaned back in his chair, fixing his gaze upon the large window. People were hastily walking back and forth in the busy street trying to get out of the rain. He raised a brow at that, he hadn't realized it had started raining in the first place.

“YES!!” Bulma exclaimed suddenly, startling the group for a second time. They all gave her questioning looks.

“Oh this is great!” She turned her attention Krillin.

“Who's got your back, like always huh? You're going to love this! You got your phone on ya right?” Before Krillin could answer, his phone buzzed. He was confused to say the least when Bulma's name popped up on the screen.

“Why are you texting me? I'm right in front of you.” He asked. That raised some brows but Bulma waved her hand in dismissal.

“Just open it!”

“Ohhkay...” Krillin did as he was told. Bulma had sent him an image file. He opened it, expecting it to be one of her stupid science joke cartoons again. His eyes widened considerably when he realized that was not the case.

“Wha? How? I mean...is it real???” He said loudly.

“You're not pulling my leg right? Because that would just be cruel, even for you. That would be just the meanest most..” But Bulma interrupted him.

“Oh it's real alright! And the very last one!When you told me you missed your chance to get a ticket, I remembered my dad is good friends with owner of the concert hall the Red Ribben 'Droids will be playing at. He usually gets free tickets and stuff so I asked him if he got a ticket this time as well and he did! Pretty damn awesome right?! And the best part, it's a ticket for the ground area, which means you'll be standing right in front of the stage if you get there early enough!”

Krillin stared at the digital ticket on his phone screen, still in disbelieve before jumping up and practically glomping his friend in gratitude.

“Thank you! You have no idea how much this means to me! How can I ever repay you for something this awesome!”

“Oh I'll think of something.” Bulma said with a smile.

“Man that's awesome! That's like a dream come true isn't it?” Goku said with a smile, knowing how much Krillin loved that particular band. His whole room back at the Dojo was covered in posters of them.

“The only thing though, how are you going to get there? You don't have license. I'd take you but I'm busy that day.” Bulma remarked.

“I'll take the bus. Satan city is only about an hour and a half away.”

“Yea, or I could take you on my motorcycle!” Yamcha offered. Krillin declined politely.

“Nah, I don't know what time it ends, I wouldn't want you to have to stay up just so you can pick me up again. And there will be night buses since it's on a Saturday evening.”

“I still think you should retry for your license though.” Chichi said.

“Maybe, but I don't feel like making a fool of myself again any time soon.” Krillin grimaced thinking back at his disastrous driver's exam.

“True.” Chichi agreed. Krillin just smiled, looking back at his phone screen. He couldn't believe he was going to see his favourite band live on stage. He already knew it was going to be a night he would never forget.
***
Krillin jogged towards the bus stand and read the lines that would come across it. He smiled when he realized he lucked out, he only had to switch buses one time. He shoved his hands in his pockets, pacing back and forth almost nervously.

Tonight was the big night!

He would see the Red Ribbon 'Droids live. And it looked like he would arrive at the concert hall almost 4 hours in advance which suited him just fine, he might be able to snatch up a good spot on the floor area in front of the stage when they opened the doors. He smoothed down the front of his shirt, chuckling when he thought back at Goku's exasperated sighs and huffs when he hadn't been able to decide which band shirt to wear. He wanted to look extra good just in case and had decided on one of the nicer dress shirts that had the band's logo on the back which was currently hidden by his light summer jacket.

He even did his hair and everything.

Krillin held up his hand when his bus came around the corner. He greeted the driver who checked his ticket before he walked on and found a seat. The bus was almost empty, there was an old lady up front and a few rowdy teens in the back. He sat in the middle by the window. Picking around in the large pockets of his jacket, he took out a small portable CD player and headphones.

Krillin took his jacket off and relaxed as familiar tones filled his ears. He leaned against the window and watched the scenery fly by.

By the time the bus made it to the last stop before hitting the highway, it had filled up considerably. There were only a few seats left.

He was startled when someone tapped him on the shoulder.

He hastily took his headphones off and looked up at a young woman who wasn't much older than himself. She was taller though and wearing sunglasses which struck him as odd. Her short brown hair was tied back in a small ponytail.

“Do you mind if I sit here?”

Krillin grabbed his jacket from the seat next to him.

“No, not at all. Go ahead.” He said.

“Thanks.”

“No problem.” He folded the jacket in his lap and rested his cd player on top of it.

“Wow, that's kind of old isn't it?”

Krillin glanced at the girl next to him with a questioning look.

“Your disc player.” She said with a smile. “Everyone listens to music on their phones nowadays, you hardly see those around anymore.” She offered as explanation.

“Oh right! Yeah I prefer the 'old' stuff.” Krillin said.

“Neat.”

“Thanks.”

Krillin sat up a little straighter when he realized their thighs were touching. He didn't want to rudely encroach onto her space, but the seats were pretty narrow after all. He willed his blush to go down as he apologized.

“It's okay. So what are you listening to?”

Krillin's face lit up.

“Only the best band in existence right now.” He said with a smile.

“The Red Ribbon 'Droids, I love their work.

“Hm, never heard of them.”

“Seriously?”

“You seem surprised at that fact.” The girl said with a chuckle.

“Yea, because they are getting to be very famous right now, They've toured around the world and everything! They're playing in Satan City tonight, in fact I'm heading to the concert right now.”

Krillin took his keys out of his pockets and showed her a Key chain.

“That's them then?”

“Yeah.” He answered, wondering how she could see it clearly with those sunglasses on in a dimly lit bus.

“What kind of music do they make?”

“Rock and soft rock mostly but they do have some louder songs as well. Not quite metal but getting close. Lazuli's the lead singer, she also plays guitar at times” Krillin pointed to a tall blonde woman in the picture. “Lapis is her twin brother.” He pointed to the picture once more. “He plays mainly guitar and this big guy goes by the name of Sixteen. No one knows his real name but he plays the drums. They're all very good but Lazuli is my favorite, her voice is truly something else. It's unlike anything you've ever heard before.”

The girl snorted.

“Spoken like a true fanboy, She's your favorite just because of her voice huh?” She teased.

Krillin blushed.

“Well of course she's really beautiful too, I won't deny it, but her voice is just so unique, here.” Krillin handed her his headphones.

“Listen to this song and you'll see what I mean.”

She took the headphones from him and listened as he pressed play once he found the right song. She bopped her head along the beat with a smile. When the song was over she handed it back to Krillin.

“Okay, I'll give you that, she does have a nice voice, not out of this world but nice no less. I can see why you would want to see them live. Did you at least get a good spot to view them from?”

“Ground ticket, so I'm going to try and get in front of the podium for sure. Won't be easy but I'll manage.”

Krillin turned the disc player off , his stop was coming up soon. He glanced to his right.

“So uhm..what kind of music do you like then?” He asked.

The girl shrugged.

“A little bit of everything, don't really have a preference.” She said.

“Oh okay.” Krillin wrung his hands, somehow the sudden silence felt a little awkward to him. Now that he was finished talking about his favourite subject, he wasn't quite sure what to say. He cursed inwardly, he always seemed to get hung up on words whenever he talked to girls.

“Uhm..” But before he could say anything, she stood up.

“This is my stop, it was nice meeting youuu...?”

“Krillin.”

“Krillin, okay. Well thanks for the enjoyable bus ride, I hope you have fun at the concert.” She gave a small wave before swiftly turning around and walking towards the door. She was already out of the doors when Krillin realized something.

“Hey wait! What's your na....me? He finished softly when the doors closed. He craned his neck to see where she was headed but she had already disappeared into the crowd.

“Way to go dumb-ass, finally you hold somewhat of a conversation with a woman and you forget to ask her name, or number for that matter! Stupid, stupid stupid!” He scolded himself. He was pretty sure he wouldn't see her again anytime soon.

He pressed the red button beneath the window indicating he needed to get off the bus at the next stop.

When he switched buses and arrived at his destination, all thoughts of the strange girl in sunglasses disappeared to the back of his mind. He groaned when he saw there were already quite some people lined up at entrance F, the one he would have to use to get in. He hastily got in line while pulling up the ticket on his phone. It was going to be a while but he was determined to be prepared to make a run for it so he could snag a spot in front of the podium.

He almost felt giddy at the thought.
***
Krillin was having the time of his life! He'd managed to sprint all the way to the front of the ground area of the concert hall. He was so close to the stage that he had to look up which strained his neck a little. He knew he'd regret it in the morning but for now he didn't care as he sung his heart out with everyone else around him.

The band was just as amazing live as he had imagined them to be, he was totally starstruck. He had also spotted some merchandise booths he definitely would pay a visit after the concert was over.

“We've got a lively audience tonight!” Lapis said. The crowd cheered.

“Let's cool down a little, what you say sis?”

The blonde girl nodded her approval. She propped herself up on a stool with her guitar.

“That would be nice.” She said with a smile. The crowd cheered again but Krillin only had eyes for Lazuli once she hit the first notes of a song he knew all to well, it was his favourite. He swayed from side to side, as he listened to her clear voice, mouthing the words with her as she sang.

A peaceful serenity seemed to come over the hall as people swayed back and forth, some even holding lighters up as they swung their arms from left to right.

Krillin opened his eyes, Lazuli had gotten up and was walking back and forth on the large stage, every once in a while stopping to engage the crowd.

Krillin's heart skipped several beats when she came to a halt close to where he was when the song ended.

Time seemed to slow down when she looked down and locked her eyes on his. He wasn't sure why but Krillin suddenly felt like she was looking right into his soul. The moment was over as quickly as it came but to Krillin the world had slowed down a little. His cheeks felt really hot.

Did she just wink at him?

He let out a wistful sigh, he was clearly seeing things that were not there. His imagination sometimes got the best of him after all, and yet he couldn't shake the feeling that she had purposefully sought him out in the crowd in that moment. He shook his head to clear his mind before joining the rest of the crowd in their cheers.

He was saddened when they announced their last song for the evening a while later. He didn't want the evening to go by as quickly as it did.

He already knew he would never forget it. He truly owed Bulma for giving him this opportunity.

After one final encore, the band bid their farewell to deafening cheers of the audience. The lights came on and people started to flock to the exits to either go home or check out the merchandise. Krillin let himself be guided by the moving crowd until he was out of the concert hall. He made his way over to one of the merchandise booths to purchase the band's newest CD. They had sung a few new songs off it as a treat and he had liked what he heard.

But as his luck would have it, they were already sold out. He softly cursed, now he would have to wait till the official release in stores, which wasn't until a day from now. He swallowed his disappointment and bought a new shirt, and a key-chain in the form of the band's logo instead. At a different booth, he purchased several new posters, tho he wasn't sure if he had space left on his walls.

Krillin grimaced a little, he had spent most of his monthly allowance but he shrugged it off, it was so worth it. He popped a capsule to put his newly purchased items in. After resealing it, he carefully placed it in the inner pocket of his jacket.

When he finally stepped foot outside, he was greeted with light rain. He hastily made his way to the bus stops for shelter. He located his route number and groaned when he realized he had just missed the bus by a few minutes. Now he had to wait for almost an hour on the next one since the night schedule had kicked in. He hadn't realized it was almost midnight already. He wouldn't be home till at least three in the morning and that was only if he made his connection on time.

He sat down on one of the small benches the stop provided and just watched the people around him going their merry way while listening to his music player.

After about half an hour, the crowds had significantly thinned to just a few people scattered here and there. The rain had stopped though so Krillin stood up and stretched his leg for a little while. A look on his watch told him his bus was due to arrive in ten more minutes.

He sighed when his stomach growled softly. He hadn't eaten a proper meal before leaving and was feeling the effects of that right now. There was a small snack-bar across the street which was still open but it seemed very busy and he didn't want to risk missing another bus. So he popped a piece of gum in his mouth and sat back down.

He smiled as he relived the concert in his mind. If they ever came back for another show, he would definitely make sure he was the first to purchase tickets even if it meant having to travel to an actual ticket office and camp out in front of it.

He glanced to his right when something caught his eye. A large black luxurious car was driving past slowly. Krillin chuckled, the people of Satan City had a habit of showing off their assets. At least that's what Bulma told them when she came back from a banquet that was held in honour of the Mixed Martial Arts World champion for whom the city was named.

“Must be nice to be so rich sometimes.” Krillin remarked as he watched the car round a corner and disappear from sight.

Krillin stood up when his bus arrived. It was completely empty. He made a beeline for the back seats and slumped down. He was startled when his phone vibrated in his pocket.

“Hey Goku. Yeah I'm on my way, I missed the first bus after the concert. I hope I'll make the connection though.”

Krillin raised his brows at his friend's reply.

“What do you mean you'll tell Master Roshi? Don't tell me he's still up?”

He found that very surprising since the old Dojo Master usually retired for the night before 9 pm.

After exchanging a few more words, Krillin hung up and pressed the red button under the window when his transfer stop came into view. He frowned when he realized the bus park was totally deserted.

“Don't tell me.” He groaned. He made his way to the right stop and let out a relieved sigh. He hadn't missed his connection, he simply had arrived a little earlier than planned. But he didn't mind because here he could at least get something to snack on.

He counted out some change while he made his way to brightly lit section that held the vending machines.

“Fancy meeting you here.”

Krillin raised his brows at the voice, it sounded familiar. He gasped in surprise when he turned around and came face to face with the same girl he had met earlier.

“What are the odds huh? It's not everyday you get to meet the same stranger twice in one day. Must be destiny or something.” She said waving her hand in his face for he still hadn't said anything.

“Hello?”

“Huh, oh right! Yeah odd. Sorry but you startled me.” Krillin said.

The brunette stepped around him. She inserted some coins and grabbed a can of sparkling water.

“I never got to ask your name?” Krillin said. She was still wearing the same sunglasses and it unnerved him a little. She seemed to sense his uneasiness for she pointed at them.

“My eyes are really sensitive to light, these help with my vision.” She said gesturing around the brightly lit area they were standing in.

“Oh, okay. Sorry I didn't mean too...” But she waved her hand dismissively.

“It's alright, I know it looks a bit weird.”

Krillin scratched the back of his head. She had completely ignored his first statement.

“Uhm..what are you doing here of all places?” She gave him a smile.

“I could say the same about you though I think I know the answer to your case., But if you must know. I work at a 24 hour convenience store and my shift ended about an hour ago. I accidentally got on the wrong bus so had to make a detour to get back here. It sucked.”

Krillin held up his hands.

“I didn't mean anything by it, I was just curious.” He said quickly. Inwardly he could kick himself. Things were going pretty smoothly at the moment, there was no need to put his own foot in his mouth so to speak.

“So, which bus are you waiting on then?” He asked to keep the conversation going.

“The same as you.”

“How do..”

“I rode with you earlier didn't I?”

“Right, yea makes sense.”

As if on cue, bus-line 3 came around the corner. They quickly made their way to the correct stop so they could get on. This bus was empty as well but Krillin took a seat in one of the middle aisles this time. He smiled slightly to himself when the brunette followed him.

“Might as well enjoy your company for a little while longer, well until the next stop at least.”

Krillin scooted over towards the window so she could sit down next to him.

“So, am I correct in assuming that you just came from your concert? Was it good?”

“It was amazing, actually.” Krillin proceeded to go into great detail about everything until he realized he was rambling. He felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment.

“I'm sorry, I got carried away. I must be boring to listen to by now since all I really talked about is this band.”

But she shook her head.

“Nope, I think it's actually kind of cute the way you talk about it so passionately. I don't mind listening to that. Sorry you didn't get to buy that CD though.”

Krillin wasn't aware his cheeks could heat up that much more.

Did she just call him cute?

He couldn't believe how his night was turning out to be. If only Yamcha could see him now, Krillin was pretty sure his friend would be jumping up and down in glee when he saw he actually held a conversation with a woman for once without things getting awkward like earlier in the day.

Granted, he had mostly been talking about a much loved subject but somehow she just made him feel at ease. He wondered if he could muster his courage to ask her for her number. He nervously bit his lip before making up his mind.

“You're really nice to talk too..uhm well you're pretty cool actually...” He trailed off, already feeling his resolve crumble a little. But he took a deep breath and pushed through.

“I wondered if you'd like to exchange phone numbers? ” He finished softly. He averted his eyes and twiddled his thumbs as he waited for her response.

“I can't do that.” She said after a moment of silence.

“Oh, okay.” Krillin felt himself deflate just slightly. She seemed to notice the slight dejected tone in his voice for she gave him a reassuring smile.

“It's not for reasons you might think right now though. Because to be honest, you're actually pretty cool yourself and if things were different...”

She stood up and gazed down at him. Because of her sunglasses he couldn't really read her face but it almost seemed as if she was disappointing by something.

“This is my stop. Thanks for your company. It was really nice to be able to just relax and not worry about ...” But she didn't finish her sentence.

Krillin frowned at that statement but before he could ask what she meant by that, she was already at the front of the bus. He watched her talk to the driver for a moment before getting off.

Krillin slumped back in his seat and stared at the front of the bus where she had disappeared. He was still confused but decided not to dwell on it. She probably had good reasons not to give out her information. He was just glad he got to meet her. Maybe if he took this bus a little more often, he might run into her again.

He frowned when he realized the bus was still stationary. He glanced at the front. The driver seemed to be in a conversation on his radio. A look at his watch told him that he should have departed by now. He couldn't help but panic a little but before he could get up to ask the driver what was going on, a sharp knock sounded to his left.

His eyes widened when he spotted a familiar face looking up at him. She gestured for him to open the window.

Glancing to the front to make sure the driver was still occupied, Krillin carefully rolled it down.

He let out a small yelp when she reached up and took a hold of the front of his shirt to pull him towards her. By now he was hanging half out of the window.

“I really wish things could be different, you know.” She said softly before letting go of him.

“But this is just how it's supposed to be. Nonetheless, I hope this makes up for it.”

She held out a small bag. Krillin took it from her with a puzzled expression.

“See you, Krillin. It was very nice to meet you.”

His eyes widened considerably when she kissed him softly on the cheek. He could feel his face practically burn up and just knew he was resembling a really nice tomato right about now.

“Uhm what...huh?” He stammered. She just gave him a smile before turning away from him.

He watched as she walked away. It was then that he noticed a large black car that was identical to the one he had seen in Satan City and she was headed right to it. Part of him wondered if it had been following their bus all along. He was confused to say the least but shook his head to clear his mind.

“Hey wait! Can you at least tell me your name, please?” He yelled out.

The brunette turned around when she reached the car. She lowered her sunglasses to reveal bright icy blue eyes.

“Why? You've known my name all along.”

Krillin's heart skipped several beats. There was only one person he knew who had that particular shade of colour eyes, well aside from her brother. But that couldn't be...

“No freaking way?!” Krillin's eyes widened so much that he was surprised they didn't roll out of his skull.

He could only stare as she got in the car and closed the doors. Almost immediately it revved up and drove off. He just stayed where he was, hanging half out of the window as his mind tried to process just what had happened.

“Hey you! Close that window!”

Krillin jumped, bumping his head against the top of the window frame as he hastily retreated back inside.

“S..sorry, I got a little warm.” He rolled the window back up. He slumped back against his seat.

“I'm dreaming right now, I must be. There is just no way this happens in real life, let alone my life! Yea, I'm going to wake up soon and be disappointed it was all just a figment of my imagination.” He muttered to himself. The bus started moving but he didn't even notice.

Krillin couldn't help but pinch himself, hard.

“Ouch!” He exclaimed softly, partly surprised at the small sting of pain. But he just couldn't comprehend it was all very real.

It was then that his eyes fell onto the small in the seat next to him.

He fumbled with it for a moment before carefully reaching in to retrieve whatever she had given him. He gasped loudly when he held up a brand spanking new Red Ribbon 'Droids CD, the very same that was sold out at the concert.

But this copy looked a little different, it had something scribbled on the cover. With a jolt he realized it were the autographs of all the band members.

“Holy shit!” He exclaimed loudly before clamping a hand over his mouth. He sat back in stunned silence mulling over his evening in his head.

He thought back to that strange moment at the concert where it seemed Lazuli had singled him out. Now that theory didn't seem too far fetched.

“Oh geesh...And all this time... I was gushing over her band and she just sat and listened. How embarrassing!”

Krillin buried his face in his hands, trying really hard to keep his composure when a sudden thought crossed his mind.

He felt his face burn up for the umpteenth time that evening as he reached up slowly with his hand to touch his cheek with his fingertips.

"Oh my God! I just got kissed by Lazuli from the Red Ribbon 'Droids..."

**

“Well, that was... interesting to to say the least, though it gets old having to chase after you just because you like to wander off on your own whenever we play somewhere!”

Lazuli shrugged at her brother as she took of her sunglasses and wig before relaxing against the back of the comfortable car seats. She turned her gaze towards the scenery that flew by behind the tinted windows. A slight smile appeared on her face as she rested her head against the cool glass.

“We should come back to this region, sometime.”

Lapis just snorted.

“Whatever you say, sis.”

Chapter Text

Krillin slumped forward, resting his hands on his knees as he tried to regain his breath. In front of him, Eighteen was wiping generous amounts of sand from her clothes.

"G..got you!"

She grimaced at his statement.

"You just got lucky I got distracted!"
"Distracted? By what?" Krillin asked puzzled.
"That...doesn't matter right now." Eighteen said averting her eyes for a moment. She huffed slightly before assuming a defensive stance once more.
"Let's just continue."
Krillin nodded, mimicking her.

"Alright, ready!"
No sooner had the words come from his mouth, she was upon him with a barrage of punches and well-aimed kicks. He managed to dodge her attacks but had to strain himself to keep up with her intensity. Whatever had distracted Eighteen just a moment ago apparently wasn't an issue anymore, because she quickly advanced on him, forcing him backward a few steps as he almost lost his balance.

He quickly threw his hands up when she aimed for his face and grabbed a hold of hers. Their fingers interlocked as they came into a standoff.
Krillin was slightly panting as he struggled to stay firmly rooted to the ground which was hard to do in the soft sand of the beach.

"Give up?" Eighteen asked with a smirk as she took another big step forward, pushing against his hands.

"Never!" Krillin hissed. He felt the ground beneath his feet change from soft sand to grass as she pushed him further back towards the pink house behind him.

Krillin could feel his arms begin to tremble as he forced himself to resist harder. He knew he'd about reached his limit but refused to give up. He let out a frustrated growl when he realized she wouldn't budge. He glared up at her, she returned his stare with a determined one of her own.

"It's pretty obvious who's the winner this time." She said with a grin.
But Krillin gave her a small smile as he gritted his teeth. He strengthened his hold on her hands.

"It's not over until one of us lets go, and it's not going to be me!"

Eighteen raised a brow at his statement. She regarded him for a moment. Krillin was considerably weaker than herself of course, but she admired his determination. She took a step forward but he remained firmly rooted to the spot.

She took another.

Krillin could feel his arms start to hurt from the strain he put on them. He concentrated on Eighteen. He noticed there was sand on her face and her cheeks were flushed slightly pink which surprised him because usually, she looked as if she hadn't lifted a finger during a spar. He thought to himself it looked cute on her before hastily averting his eyes and banishing that thought to the back of his mind. Now was not the time to think about things like that.

But it was too late, he suddenly became almost hyper-aware of just how close she was and how the way her fingers were intertwined with his felt like a perfect fit. He felt his cheeks flush with heat when he looked back up at her. There was something about her expression that made his heart skip a beat although he didn't know what it was exactly.
He was so taken with staring at the blonde in front of him, that he hadn't noticed she was still pushing him back slowly until his back pressed against the wall of Kame House. His eyes widened when Eighteen pushed his arms up and against the wall as well, staring down at him with that same puzzling expression from before.

Her proximity made his head spin. It was dangerous to be so close to her and his mind was screaming at him to get away before he did something stupid like he had done in his tipsy state of mind a few nights ago when he had kissed her cheek.

Krillin cleared his throat, averting his eyes and willing his heartbeat to calm down before she might notice something was off.

"You've got me." He said softly.

"Do I?"

Krillin frowned at her response. It was painfully clear she won, so why was she not letting go?

Eighteen was staring at him as if she was searching for something. Her face was oddly flustered.

Suddenly he got a feeling this was not just about their spar anymore and that made him nervous. They'd had moments like these before, where it seemed they were on the brink of something new and exciting yet too scared to take the plunge. Did he dare go there now?
Krillin swallowed softly before making up his mind.

"Yes." He answered, hoping it was the right thing to say.

For a split second, all was silent.
Then everything seemed to happen at once. He felt himself being pushed up against the wall of Kame House, only half aware of what was happening at first but when realization kicked in, he was too far gone.

Her mouth was so warm.

Eighteen let go of his hands as their kisses grew more frantic and Krillin desperately took a tight hold of her shirt to try and steady himself somewhat which was hard to do when your feet weren't touching the ground anymore.

Krillin felt lightheaded when Eighteen slowed the pace with a few soft brushes of her lips against his before starting to pull back.
He was almost breathless when they parted. He gasped softly, keeping his eyes closed. He wanted to pinch himself, just to be sure it wasn't another dream. That he would find nothing when he opened his eyes.

But the feeling of a warm body pressed tightly against his, and small puffs of air on his face told him that this moment was indeed very real.
He slowly opened his eyes and came face to face with Eighteen.

"Oh..." He whispered.
"Oh gosh."

Eighteen raised a brow at him, but there was a small smile on her face.

"Indeed." She simply said.

Krillin let out a small sigh. He closed his eyes when he felt Eighteen lean in to rest her forehead against his. He longed to just stay right in this moment but knew sooner or later they'd had to face the reality of what just had transpired.

"So..." He started.
"So...what?" Eighteen asked softly.

Eighteen stepped back slightly so she wasn't pinning him against the wall anymore, but she didn't relinquish her grip on him.
And while Krillin was kind of glad to feel the ground beneath his feet again, he was pretty sure if Eighteen would let him go right now, he would fall flat on his behind. His legs were actually trembling.

"Please don't let go, I don't think my legs will hold me up right now." He said softly

He reached up to tuck her hair behind her ear, not sure how to say what was on his mind but he decided to give it a shot no less.

"Well, we kind of crossed a line when we...you know. I mean...". Krillin averted his gaze for a moment as he gathered his jumbled thoughts. Locking his eyes on hers once more, he began to speak.

"It's just that, after all this time getting to know you and growing closer to you, I'm just a little overwhelmed and uncertain of what to do next since...well I... I've dreamed of this exact moment for a long time now. Of being with you as more than just your friend." He confessed.

"I know."
He raised his brows at Eighteen's statement.

"How do.."
But she interrupted him.

"Because I've been feeling the same way." She said softly.

Krillin felt his cheeks grow warm once again.

"Really?"
"Would I kiss you like that if I wasn't?"

"Ah. I guess not." Krillin said. He was still holding on to her shirt and Eighteen could feel his fingers twitch nervously against her sides. She gently grasped a hold of his chin and turned his face upwards.

"After all, you're the one who started this, when you kissed me a few days ago. Even if you were drunk." She added amused.
But Krillin shook his head at once.

"You're wrong."
"How so?"
"You're the one who kissed me first."

Eighteen didn't need to ask which kiss he was referring too as she flash-backed to a certain abandoned highway where she had left him behind to take care of his beaten friends. She leaned down, closing her eyes.

"I like kissing you like this better though." She whispered against his mouth.
Krillin just let out a soft sigh as he let himself get swept away by her, thinking he had no choice but to agree with her on that.

Chapter Text

“I can't do this anymore.”

The words were spoken soft, almost inaudible but she heard them loud and clear and yet, if only for a moment, there was a coldness that overtook her without her understanding why.

Until he turned away and his warm touch left her as he dropped her hand.

“Krillin?”

The short man did not turn to face her at her inquiry. Instead, he squared his shoulders before letting out a long sigh.

“I've tried, Eighteen. I've tried so hard, but I just cannot keep up this facade any longer. I've been ignoring the small voices in the back of my head for so long now, just because I'm stubborn and I didn't want to see it, didn't want to believe it. But I can't deny it any longer”

Krillin shot her a look over his shoulder before fixing his gaze back towards the ocean.

“This is not working. We're just too different.”

Eighteen clenched her fists, narrowing her eyes at the back of his head.

“Care to explain that one?” She hissed softly, trying to keep the tremble out of her voice. The full impact of the scene slowly unfolding before her was about to hit her and she was not ready for it.

Krillin turned around.

“What's there to explain? I think you already know. Why drag this moment out any further and make it harder on both of us?”

Eighteen's breath hitched in her throat and she had to look away from the coldness in his eyes. She had never seen him look at her like that. She shook her head before opening her mouth to speak.

“ I thought..” But Krillin held up his hands.

“I know what I said, and I meant it at that time. I really thought we could work out and for a while I really wanted things to work out too, believe me. But there is always this smidgen of doubt when it comes to you.

I try to not think about it but it's kind of impossible when confronted with your differences on a daily basis. And in the back of my mind I just cannot help but think that maybe one day you'll just convert back to what you once were and that scares me.”

“I would never...”

“You can say that now, but how can you be sure? After all, you are a fighting machine designed to kill. Even if you're reformed now, there is no way of knowing if or when your programming might turn on you. I can't risk that . You know, deep inside, this is the truth, don't deny it.”

Eighteen blinked at the cruel tone of his voice. She pinched herself, this couldn't be real, this had to be some kind of dream, a nightmare perhaps.

“It's just not worth it anymore.”

She was wordless as she stared down at the man in front of her. The man who had shown her a whole new world after she had been saved, the man who had carefully guided her through this new chance at life and who had slowly but surely wormed his way past her walls into her heart.

The man who was now breaking said heart in a million pieces and being unnecessarily cruel about it.

Her Krillin didn't have a mean bone in his body and yet here he was, scorching her with every word that came out of his mouth. There was a hotness prickling at the corner of her eyes but she refused to let the tears fall.

“Look, I know this is a lot to take in and I really wish I didn't have to do this, but I think it's best for everyone.”

“Everyone?” Eighteen could not hide the tremble in her voice.

“Why now? Why didn't...why?” She bit her lip as the tears started to fall.

“I just told you why. It isn't that hard to understand! Honestly I should have done this sooner. But like I said, I was stubborn.”

Krillin turned away from her. Shoving his hands in the pockets of his shorts he started to walk away.

“I won't ask you to leave the island, I'm not that cruel, I know you have nowhere to go. Stay as long as you want. We can still be friends, but for now I need some space. This is hard for me as well.”

Eighteen just stared at him as he walked away from her. She wanted run after him, yell at him, shake him, do whatever was necessary to bring him back to his senses but she just stood motionless as he stepped inside the house and closed the door behind him.

There was a certain numbness that overcame her as she turned away from the house and shot up in the air. She didn't know where she was going, all she knew was that she had to get away . But suddenly she just didn't have the drive to fly anymore and descended on an uninhabited island.

The moment her feet touched the ground, she broke down in heart-wrenching sobs that ripped through her whole being. Her mind was in shambles as she tried desperately to rationalize just exactly what happened, the meaning of Krillin's harsh words gnawing away at her conscious as she slumped down against a tree and buried her face in her arms.

She tried to halt her cries but it was no use, the feelings that ran through her were so raw that they almost scared her. Her breathing became shallow. She felt lightheaded and disoriented. It was as if the word had gotten ten times darker around her.

Someone was calling her name, it sounded like her brother yet too distorted to be sure.
She ignored it, thinking it was probably her mind playing tricks on her because she was so distraught. How could her brother know where she was anyway?

“Eighteen.”

The voice became louder and there was a sudden warmth that enveloped her. She opened her eyes and blinked in confusion.

She was no longer on the island, but rather in a warm bed with someone next to her, shaking her gently but urgently. Once her eyes adjusted to the darkness around her, they focused on the person hoovering above her.

“Eighteen?”

Krillin's voice was soft and his face was a bit pale as he looked down at her. He turned on the bedside table light before gently wrapping an arm around her shoulders to help her sit up.

“Hey, are you okay? Snap out of it please, you're scaring me.”

“Huh, what?”

Eighteen wiped at her face, it was wet and her eyes felt swollen.

“You were having another nightmare, I think?” Krillin wiped her hair out of her face.

“Nightmare...?”

Then she came back to her senses and turned to look at Krillin who was still looking at her with wide eyes. She could feel him rub her arm gently, his hand was trembling slightly against her skin.

“Wait, it was just a dream? You're not leaving me?”

“What the...no of course not! Why would I want to do that?”

Eighteen couldn't help the sigh of relieve that escaped her and at once her whole body relaxed as she slumped against Krillin who quickly wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close.

“I'm so glad.” She said softly.

Krillin was confused to say the least. He wiped away some stray tears from her cheeks. He'd had the fright of his life when he was jerked awake by Eighteen's harsh sobs and when he couldn't snap her out of it like usual, he almost went into full panic mode. His heart was still racing in his chest.

He frowned when he repeated her words in his mind, she had thought he was leaving her. From the way she had looked trashing around and crying relentlessly, he'd assumed she had nightmares of Gero's lab again. Never would he have thought it could have something to do with him.

He felt an acute urge to make sure she knew her fears were unfounded.

“You know you're stuck with me, right? I'm not going anywhere, not now, not ever.” He said softly lifting her chin up so he could look at her.

Eighteen bit her lip as she nodded. She buried her face back into the crook of his neck when he let go of her. Krillin squeezed her into him.

“I am curious though, what made you think something like that?”

“I don't know.” Eighteen was silent for a moment before continuing. She recalled the words said in her dreams and relayed them to Krillin who abruptly tightened his grip on her.

“I don't think I've ever seen you look at me like you did in my dream.” Just the memory of that particular moment ran a shiver through her.

“I can't believe such words came from my nightmare self's mouth. I could never say that. I love you too much, and the the fact that you're different and I sure as hell don't think you'd turn on me and everyone else. That's absurd In fact I...” But he grew silent.

He untangled himself from her grip. He gently took her face in his hands and kissed her, making sure she got the remainder of the message he tried to convey without words. When he pulled away, her face was red once more but there was a smile on her lips.

“It was just a stupid dream, nothing more, nothing less. Forget about it.”

Eighteen nodded in agreement.

Krillin dimmed the bedside lamp to a low glow and laid back, pulling her down with him before covering them up with the warm blankets.

“Will you stay awake with me for a little while, I don't feel like going back to sleep just yet?” Eighteen asked as she made herself comfortable against his warm body.

“Of course.” Krillin answered softly.

Chapter Text

TUSOKI

19; Fly
***
It was a warm and quiet day on Kame Island. The time of day where it was too hot to venture outside, even for a swim unless you wanted a nice sunburn. Later there would be time for that, but for now, the occupants of Kame house were inside, doing their own various little things.

Master Roshi had left earlier to get some new lady magazines. Krillin and Eighteen were at the kitchen table, sipping some iced tea while playing a quiet game of chess.

Glancing up at the ceiling, Krillin frowned a bit.

"You think we should wake Marron up? I'm surprised she fell asleep like that in the middle of the day."

Eighteen didn't answer him at first, she was too busy calculating her next move. When she moved her pawn she sat back with a grin as Krillin let out a sigh when he noticed what she had done.

"Your turn, and no, she's been running around with Trunks and Goten all morning, I can understand she was tired after that. Besides, when was the last time she took a nap willingly? At least let her sleep until we finish the game."

Krillin nodded in agreement.

"Good point!"

Unbeknownst to her parents, their five-year-old was not sleeping at all. Instead, she had climbed out of her window and was now standing on the roof of Kame House with a very thoughtful frown on her face.

Clenching her fists, she very cautiously scooted to the edge of the roof, gulping slightly when she saw just how high up she was.

"Don't look, it's OK." She whispered while tightly closing her eyes.

Eighteen was about to move her chess piece and win the game when a piercing scream ripped through the silence around them.

There was a clatter of chairs and chess pieces as both she and Krillin jumped up simultaneously.

"Marron?!"

"Why did that come from outside?!"

They quickly stepped outside and around the house. The sight that greeted them wasn't a pretty one.

Marron was on the ground, crying hysterically holding on to one of her wrists. One of her ankles had swollen up considerably and looked worse for wear and there were several small scrapes on her legs and arms. Her lip looked busted as it was bleeding a little. It took everything in Eighteen not too go into full panic mode. A look to her right told her, her husband was in the same boat.

She quickly sat down and very carefully pulled her daughter into her lap, making sure not to jostle her too much. Marron's heart-wrenching cries did not help her already racing heart. The little girl seemed inconsolable for a moment. Eighteen willed herself to stay calm.

"Shh...shh. It's going to be okay."

"It h..hurts!"

"That wrist looks broken," Krillin remarked as he knelt down in front of them.

"And that ankle doesn't look much better. What did you do, Firefly?" He gently wiped some of Marron's tears, her sobs had subsided somewhat but she was still very upset.

"I j..just w..wanted t..to f..fly!"

"Fly?" For a moment both Krillin and Eighteen were dumbfounded, then realization set in and Krillin clutched the front of his shirt in shock.

"Don't tell me...Marron did you jump off the roof?!" He asked.

Marron nodded, hiding her face in her mother's neck. Eighteen sucked in her breath at that revelation but didn't say anything. They would address that issue in a little bit, for now, Marron needed some first aid.

"Bring her inside, I think we still have some sensu," Krillin said. Eighteen carefully stood up and followed him in the house. She laid Marron on the couch while Krillin went to the kitchen to get the little miracle beans.

"Here we go, eat this."

Marron grimaced when she chewed, it tasted weird. After only a few seconds the pain subsided considerably and her wrist and ankle felt really hot for a moment until all the pain vanished and she felt better than ever.

"How are you feeling?" Eighteen asked. She helped Marron sit up against the couch cushions.

"Good."

Eighteen let out a relieved sigh. She sat up straight and folded her hands in front of her chest. Krillin took a seat on the corner of the coffee table. Marron could feel her parent's eyes on her. Now that she was out of danger, the reality of the situation set in. She bit her lip nervously, she knew she was going to be in trouble.

Krillin gently tousled her hair before he adopted a very serious expression.

"I understand you wanting to fly, but why didn't you ask me or Mommy to teach you? You're lucky you didn't get hurt worse than you were! You really scared us for a moment there."

"I thought I could do it after watching you and everyone else fly all the time. It looked so easy. But even if I jump really high, I won't stay in the air so I thought jumping down from something would help."

Eighteen raised a brow at that.

"Flying can be easy, once you learn the proper way to do it. You don't just go jump off random things and hope you don't get hurt! That was a really reckless thing to do, do you understand that? You could have gotten hurt worse!"

Marron bowed her head at her mother's stern tone of voice and nodded.

"I'm sorry."

Eighteen just shook her head and sighed. Sometimes she really wondered if Marron was capable of seeing the danger in anything she did.

"I won't do it again, I promise."

Krillin stood up.

"You got that right, no more roof access for you, young lady. At least not until you know how to properly stay in the air.

Marron's eyes lit up.

"Will you teach me, Daddy?"

"I might think about it. For now, I think it's best you stay inside for the remainder of the day." With that, he left the living room to clean up the chess pieces and chairs from the kitchen floor.

Marron slumped back against the cushions of the couch after that. She had planned to go swimming with Turtle when the sun wasn't too hot anymore.

"And no TV, and I think an earlier bedtime for the next three days should suffice." Eighteen added. "7 pm sounds like a good time to me."

Marron frowned at the last part of Eighteen's statement but knew it was useless to try and argue it. Her mother usually kept her foot down unlike her dad, who could be persuaded every once in a while.

"Okay."

Eighteen held her arms open and Marron crawled into her lap.

"I'm sure glad you're okay though." She said hugging the small girl close.

"But why do you want to fly so badly now? You never asked us or told us before you wanted to learn. We figured you didn't really care for it."

"I just want to keep up with Trunks and Goten. They always fly up when we play tag, because they know I can't follow them. It's not fair!" Marron huffed, crossing her arms. Eighteen shook her head at that. She could have known it had something to do with those two boys.
***********
Marron's face was scrunched up in concentration as she stared at the small ball of energy her dad was rolling between his hands. He had been trying to teach her all about KI the past few days and she had almost made a small ball of her own but it was harder than she anticipated.

"I'm never gonna do it, do I really need KI to fly?" She asked with a sigh.

"Don't give up, Firefly! You almost had it not too long ago. And yes you do."

Marron assumed her previous position and held out her hands.

"Can I feel it one more time? Maybe that helps."

"Sure." Krillin carefully let the small energy ball roll around her palms.

"What does it feel like?"

Marron thought for a moment.

"Uhm...it's warm and a little fuzzy... like my favourite pillow?" She answered.

Krillin made the ball disappear.

"Okay, concentrate on that feeling and maybe yours will come out this time."

Marron nodded, closing her eyes and breathing in deeply. From the porch, Eighteen and Master Roshi were watching them.

"I wonder if Marron will be able to adapt to KI like Krillin does once she gets the hang of it." The old man rubbed his beard.

"He has a unique way with it, he can sense things about it even I can't. He can manipulate it to his will and pinpoint almost exactly just how strong someone is or if they are hiding their powers."

Eighteen nodded in agreement. Krillin was special in that way. Even if she herself did not produce KI, she knew pretty much all about it courtesy of Gero's modifications. But knowing about it and dealing with it every day were two entirely different things, a fact she had brought up when Krillin suggested her joining in with his training sessions.

She stepped down from the porch and made her way to her husband and daughter. She sat down next to Krillin, chuckling softly at the intense concentration on Marron's face. He nudged her softly, pointing at the small girl's hands.

Eighteen raised a brow as she observed a decent sized ball of energy dancing above her daughter's palms.

"Pretty impressive hm?"

Marron opened her eyes when her hands started to feel warm. She smiled brightly when she saw she accomplished her goal.

"I did it!"

The ball flickered a little and Krillin warned her to stay focused. After a few more moments, it dissipated.

"Aw, it's gone."

"Try again."

Marron concentrated and almost jumped up in surprise when the energy came back almost immediately.

"Did you see that?"

Krillin nodded.

"Keep practicing until you get the hang of calling your KI at will. Once you can do that, we can go ahead and go to the next step."

"OK!"

Eighteen agreed to stay seated with Marron while Krillin got supper ready. She smiled as she watched her daughter get excited every time she managed to call forth her energy.

"I'm getting better, look, Mama, I can move it!" Marron slowly moved her hands so the ball jumped from one to the other. Eighteen raised her brow at that.

"Very good." She remarked.

"Very good indeed!" Krillin said with a smile when he returned.

After a few more sessions during the following days, Krillin determined Marron was ready for the next step. He had a feeling she would not have much trouble from here on out. Her KI control proved to be remarkable, a trait she definitely inherited from him according to Master Roshi and Eighteen. It made him feel proud and a little giddy at the same time.

"Alright, give me your hands."

Marron did as she was told. At once Krillin hovered up.

"Don't go too high, please!" Marron said quickly. Her whole adventure of jumping off the roof had made her a little more cautious.

"I'm not, don't worry. Now try and concentrate all your energy on your feet."

Marron nodded, doing as she was told. She felt a small jolt as if she was standing on a cloud of air.

"I think I did it." She said softly.

"How do you know?"

"Because it feels like there is something invisible under my feet."

Krillin nodded in approval. He started to slowly loosen his grip on her hands but Marron stopped him.

"Don't let go, Daddy! Not yet!"

"Alright, I'll just let you do it. Whenever you're ready."

Marron bit her lip nervously as she slowly let go of Krillin's hands. Krillin expected her to drop down the few inches to the sand of the beach but to his surprise, she stayed afloat in the air. He cocked his head a little when he noticed her stiffened posture.

"Relax, Marron. You got it!"

"Daddy, shh!" But it was too late. Her concentration was broken and she dropped down.

"Ah man!"

Krillin chuckled at his daughter's expression, she resembled her mother so much right at that moment. He sank down as well and grabbed a hold of her hands again.

"Let's try again."
***********
To say she was nervous was the understatement of the year! Marron gulped slightly as she clung to her father. They were really high up in the sky. So high that her mother, who was below them just above the ocean, looked like a little dot.

"Alright, I think it's time we fly for real now," Krillin said with a smile. Marron had mastered hovering up a few inches and had gradually added more height and movement but now was the moment of truth. How would she do from a great distance such as the one they were facing right now?

If she could pass this little test, she'd be ready.

"I'm scared," Marron said softly as she looked down once more.

"If you don't want to do it, just tell me."

"No, I wanna! But I'm scared I'll fall into the ocean or get hurt."

"That's not going to happen, your Mommy would never let you fall. She'll be there to catch you if you can't do it."

Eighteen looked up at the sky. Marron and Krillin were quite a distance above her. She had her doubts when Krillin told her of his plan but had to agree it was a foolproof way to see if Marron had what it took to keep herself safe in the air. That didn't mean she wasn't a little apprehensive. And from the looks of it, Marron was having second thoughts as well.

"Everything okay up there?" Eighteen yelled so they would hear her. Krillin gave her a thumbs up.

"Whenever you're ready, let me know." He said as he turned towards Marron. The girl took a few deep breaths.

"I'm ready!"

Krillin gave her a quick hug and kissed the top of her head.

"Alright, start counting down."

Marron opened her hand and counted down loudly from 5 to 1.

At the last count, Krillin lifted his arms and let go. With a loud scream, Marron plummeted towards the ocean. She clenched her fists and closed her eyes tightly as she felt the air rush past her.

Eighteen watched her come down at a very fast pace and braced herself, making sure she was ready to catch her daughter if needed.

All of a sudden everything went quiet. Marron had stopped screaming and slowly opened her eyes. She had come to a halt a good few inches above her mother's outstretched arms.

She was flying.

"I did it! I did it!" Her outburst made her wobble a little bit but she managed to stay airborne.

"You did, I'm so proud of you." Eighteen said with a smile. Marron willed her body to move. She flew the last few inches towards her mother and almost crashed into her arms happily.

"Did you see me?! That was so scary but so cool!" She untangled herself from her mother's arms and floated upwards.

"Daddy! Look I'm really flying this time!"

Krillin caught her as she zoomed up to him.

"Well done, Firefly. I think you're ready to give two certain saiyans a run for their money now!" He joked.

"I sure am!" Marron stretched out her arms and flew in a circle around him before descending again. Krillin followed her, coming to a halt next to his wife. Together they watch their little girl fly around them with the biggest smile on her face.

"I guess your idea worked."

Krillin nodded.

"I knew it would, I don't think Marron realized it, but she was already pretty much flying. She just needed a little push to go a bit higher."

Eighteen chuckled at that.

"At least now we don't have to worry if she jumps off the roof."

Krillin agreed wholeheartedly with that statement.

END

Chapter Text

TUSOKI

20; The Vision.

A/N; September 12 till September 18th has finally arrived which means Chestnutfest is upon us! And I have decided to write for some of the themes! 9/12's theme I chose to write for is Shared Dream.

Enjoy!
***

Looking ahead, there was only darkness. His steps echoed loudly against the rugged walls of what seemed a never-ending corridor. It was cold and humid, he could hear water running all around him.

He wasn't sure where he was or why he kept on walking, but something was coaxing him along, like an invisible hand, pulling at him with a sense of urgency.

The further he went in, the darker his surroundings became. It was very hard to see anything at this point so he reached for the wall next to him for support. The rough texture surprised him, it reminded him of the jagged rocks on one of the islands near his home.

Krillin stood still for a moment. This place certainly wasn't the same though. It was eerie and somber. He couldn't quite explain why, but he felt a pressing sadness all around him.

As he walked further into the darkness, a sudden sliver of fear gripped him. He didn't understand why, but something told him to be very cautious. He became keenly aware of his surroundings, squinting his eyes when he observed a small strip of light ahead. His first instinct was to walk toward it but something stopped him in his tracks.

Krillin held his breath, heart hammering in his chest as he listened intently. There was someone there. He could hear whispers as he cautiously inched closer. The voices grew louder but he could not understand what they were saying. It was as if they spoke an entirely different language.

As soon as he rounded another corner in his path, the small strip of light disappeared and the voices went silent. Krillin found himself reluctant to go on but shook his head and resolutely quickened his step. He was ready to get out of here, the everlasting darkness around him made him nervous and jittery.

Suddenly he bumped into something solid.

"What the...?"

The impact made him stumble backward but he managed to stay on his feet. He reached out in front of him until his hands came upon a wall. It felt cold and smooth to the touch, like glass. He felt his way around and realized that he had reached a dead end.

Krillin raised a brow when he noted that he could see through it. There was a small beam of what seemed natural light coming from somewhere.

"What is this place?"

There didn't seem to be a path beyond the wall, just some sort of dark room. It only managed to confuse him more. He leaned in to get a better look when suddenly a hand appeared out of nowhere on the other side.

Krillin screamed and jumped back, losing his footing in the process. He fell flat on his back but recovered fast, hastily scrambling backward to put some distance between him and whatever was behind the wall.

He swallowed thickly, squeezing his eyes shut and clutching his shirt over his rapidly beating heart.

"Okay, I've had enough, time to wake up now. Time to wake up! I don't like this!" He muttered.

But when he opened his eyes, he was still seated on the floor with the glass panel in front of him. The hand was still there, pale and trembling. Krillin gulped and stood back up.

"Um hello?" He said softly. He didn't dare to step closer just yet. There was no answer from the other side, he wasn't even sure if they could hear him and part of him did not want to find out either.

The hand slid down slowly as something came forward. Krillin took a step back just in case.

It was hard to see but he realized there was a person, they were hunched over. He couldn't make out their face because it was hidden behind strands of what seemed to be blonde or light brown hair.

They looked like they needed help and fast. Throwing all caution to the wind, he made his way to the wall and knelt in front of it.

"Hey, can you hear me?"

Krillin pressed his forehead against the glass.

"A..are you hurt?" He asked rather loudly. But they didn't answer him.

Now that he was closer, he could see them a little better. The person appeared to be a young woman. Her clothes were stained and torn and he could spot a few bruises and scratches here and there. He still couldn't make out her face.

Krillin didn't know who this person was but he felt his heart break for her.

"What's happened to you?" He said softly to himself. He spotted movement from the corner of his eyes and moved his head. She was reaching for him from the other side. Krillin winched when more bruises became visible on her arm. He spread his fingers against the glass as well and pressed as hard as he could, somehow hoping that his warmth would transfer to her so she'd know everything would be alright.

"Don't worry, I'm going to get you out of here!"

He stood up and backed away, looking around for something that he could use to break the wall.

He found a broken rock not too far away, gripping it slowly so the edges wouldn't hurt him. He hastily made his way back and started banging it against the glass. But it merely scratched the surface no matter how much he tried.

Krillin threw the rock down and knelt again. He thought of something but he couldn't risk it with her so close. Somehow he had to convince her to get away from the wall so he could slice through it with his Kienzan.

"You need to get back a little bit! Please! I want to help you!" He desperately yelled as loud as he could.

But instead of moving away, she pressed herself closer.

"No, move backward. Backward!" Krillin started but then he realized why. Someone was pulling on her. She was desperately trying to get away.

"No! Leave her alone!" Not caring about anything else but saving her, he charged a Kienzan as he leaped forward. He threw it at the wall expecting it to shatter on impact.

Instead, he was greeted with silence. His Kienzan hadn't done anything.

"What the hell!?"

He threw another one with the same result.

Suddenly he was met with an ear-piercing scream that startled him so bad he fell once more, covering his ears because the noise was so loud and bone-chilling.

He could do nothing but helplessly watch as the girl was dragged away from the wall into the darkness. He quickly stood and ran, pounding his fists on the wall, barraging it with energy beams and Kienzan without result, all the while yelling for them to let her go whoever they were.

Then in an instant, time stood still for a moment when she looked up and Krillin saw her face for the first time under the small beam of light. Her eyes were the bluest he'd ever seen and so full of terror that it shook him to his very core. There were hands all over her, pulling her back into the darkness.

"No.." Krillin felt tears run down his face as he helplessly watched her disappear.

"No!"

With a jolt, Krillin sat up in bed. He was drenched in sweat and his face was wet with tears. He rubbed his eyes with shaky hands and turned the light on. Letting out a sigh he fell back against the pillows.

"What was that all about?" He whispered to himself. The time on his clock told him it was 6 in the morning. After lying still for a few more minutes, trying to come to terms with what he had seen in his dreams, he shook his head and got up.

"Time to train, it was just a dream. Just a nightmare, no need to get worked up over it." He said to himself.

But somehow he already knew, he would never forget the fear in those bright blue eyes. They would haunt his dreams for days to come at least.

"No, please, don't go."

Her voice was soft and muffled. She could see him through the strands of her hair, on the other side of the glass. He was yelling at her, but she didn't understand. She could not hear him. He was thumping against the wall with something. She knew it was futile, after all, she had tried so many times before.

There was a tug, her eyes widened.

"No!" She pressed herself against the glass, trying to get away from the groping hands. The stranger in front of her was gesturing at her but she couldn't do anything. She was trapped, held down by the unknown force that terrified her ever since she visited this place in her dreams.

Her reality wasn't much better.

There was an almost blinding light for a second before everything went back to normal. He was still there, he looked surprised, shocked even. She didn't know what he had done.

She didn't know who he was, but he felt safe. Like a bright beacon in this otherwise cold and dark world, she found herself in often.

She struggled and fought against the grip that held her but already knew it was no good. Defeated she let out a scream. She raised her head to get a look at the man in front of the glass one more time. Their eyes met and in an instant, she felt herself flood with warmth. Whoever he was, he was special and she didn't want to leave.

She watched him pounding on the glass wall, trying to break it in an attempt to get to her. She let out a quiet sob when he disappeared from her vision.

"You think she's awake?"

"I dunno but give her another shot. I'd rather not have the same problem with her thrashing all over my table as her idiot brother did.

She could feel a sharp pain in her arm and surrendered to the numbing darkness once more.

There was no one to save her now.
***
Phew, that was a bit angsty hm? No less, I do hope you enjoyed reading this one-shot. Remember feedback is always appreciated! Thank you for your time! I did make an illustration but FF doesn't let you post links. You can find it on my blog, Chestnutisland on Tumblr. You can find more Chestnutfest details there as well!

Chapter Text

TUSOKI.

21; Strictly Business.

A/n. We'll be visiting TOEI's Business AU for this one so I am using Eighteen's 'human' name!

Enjoy.
***

"We really shouldn't be doing this!"

But his whispers were drowned out by a soft mouth pressed tightly against his own. His eyes fluttered shut, giving in to the beautiful woman who was currently pushing him up against an old desk in the dimly lit room.

"What if someone catches us?" He asked between kisses.

"No one uses this dingy old office anymore."

"A..are you sure." Krillin's voice squeaked a little when he felt curiously wandering hands working their way under his suit jacket to tug on the hem of his blouse. He squirmed when warm fingers skirted his sides.

"Ticklish today?"

"A little. But you're straying away from the subject at hand, did you at least lock the door?"

"Nope."

"Lazuli!"

The blonde chuckled at the panic in his voice.

"Relax Krillin, you worry too much. We're in the old part of Gero Corp, no one ever comes back here, aside from maybe a janitor or two or my brother, if he is looking for me."

"Your brother? Oh Kami what if he of all people sees us in here, how are we going to explain this to him?"

Lazuli shook her head at him. Krillin let out a small yelp when she grabbed a hold of his hand and pulled him away from the desk.

"What are you doing?"

"Shutting you up so I can go back to enjoying this. You need to loosen up a little. So what if someone might walk in, it's not like you're fraternizing with the enemy, at least not anymore." She said with a wink, referring to the fact that their companies Gero Corp. and Dragonball Enterprises had laid their rivalry to rest to come together on a community project.

"Besides, we are officially on lunch and thus off the clock for another 15 minutes so let's make them count."

Lazuli pushed him down on to the comfy leather chair behind the desk before promptly positioning herself on his lap. Krillin could feel his face burn with heat when she wiggled around to make herself more comfortable

"Hnngthat doesn't matter, this is still against company policy!" He argued weakly when he felt her plant a chaste kiss behind his ear.

"You can protest all you want, but deep down you and I both know you want this just as much as I do." She nuzzled his neck, trailing kisses all over his warm skin. Krillin felt his heart skip several beats.

"You're right, screw company policy." He murmured, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her flush against him. He could feel her jolt a little at the sudden movement.

"That's more like it." She said with a smirk before she eagerly responded to his kiss.

Meanwhile elsewhere, Lapis was grumbling to himself as he walked the long hallways of Gero Corp. He was scowling heavily, making some people move out of his way rather quickly. Lapis didn't care for them now, he had more important things to do.

Or rather, to find.

"Where have you gone off too now?" He muttered to himself as he rounded yet another corner.

"Hey...hey Lapis, wait up!"

Lapis groaned as he turned to face the tall man who was sprinting towards him. Son Goku, one of the heirs of Dragonball enterprises.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm looking for my sister, she is late. The meeting and presentations are about to start. Speaking of which, why aren't you in the conference room yet?" Lapis asked with a raised brow.

Goku fell in step with him.

"Well as it so happens, I'm looking for Krillin. I can't find him anywhere. Roshi told me to find him as quick as possible."

Lapis arched a brow.

"You don't say." He said softly to himself before a smirk appeared on his face.

"Oh, I got you now Sis!"

"Hmm? What?" Goku asked.

"Nothing, I was just talking to myself. Anyway, I think I might have an inkling as to where I can find Lazuli, and if my hunch is correct we'll find your coworker there as well.

Goku shrugged as he followed Lapis down a flight of stairs. He was kind of glad he had found him because he would have gotten lost in here for sure and that would have been even worse. Roshi was already not too happy that Krillin had disappeared in thin air.

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see," Lapis said as he pushed a code on a large panel next to some heavy looking double doors.

"If my gut feeling is right, we should find both of them in one of these offices."

"How can you be so sure?" Goku asked when the doors closed behind them.

"Let's just say I know my sister very well. We're in the old section of the business. Hardly anyone uses this space anymore. She likes coming here for some solitude, I find it soothing to just walk around, it's so nice and quiet down here.

"I think it's a bit creepy, I'm not sure Krillin would like it here either. He gets scared easily sometimes. Oh, let me tell you about this one time Yamcha got him good..."

They made their way down the long and dimly lit hallways, opening doors along the way. Lapis resisted the urge to block out Goku and his story, after all, it was interesting in a way to learn more about the person his sister had taken a liking too.

He wasn't sure if Lazuli suspected he knew about her little infatuation. But really, it was so obvious whenever the small businessman was around, it was pathetic! But Lapis hadn't said anything. He was now almost skipping with glee as they approached the last door. He was pretty sure he was about to catch his sister doing Kami knows what with Krillin, and while that vision wasn't very appealing, the satisfaction of catching her off guard was.

"Hey, be quiet. I think I hear something in that office over there." He said. Goku looked ahead.

"Really? I don't hear anything."

"Just follow me and don't make a sound!" Goku tiptoed behind him until they stood in front of the door. Lapis pressed his ear against the wood, he could definitely hear muffled voices on the other side. He just hoped his sister at least had enough sense to keep the PDA to an acceptable minimum. He did not look forward to walking into something far worse than a make-out session.

"I can hear something in here, let's check it out shall we?" Without waiting on Goku's reply, Lapis roughly pushed the door open, fully ready to embarrass his sister, only to be greeted by two identical curious stares at his bold entry.

Lazuli was seated in the chair while Krillin was perched on a corner of the desk. He was holding some papers in his hand, his body turned halfway towards the door.

"Krillin! So Lapis was right! You were with Lazuli. I'm so glad I found you, Roshi was looking for you."

"Oh, right. Sorry time got away from me here. What did he want?"

Goku shrugged his shoulders.

"He didn't say."

Krillin hopped off the desk and starting packing his papers back into his briefcase.

Lazuli folded her hands beneath her chin as she regarded her brother with a curious eye.

"What's wrong? You seem shocked or confused. Did something happen?"

"Tsk! No, but break time's over." He replied with gritted teeth. Once more his sister one-upped him. The stupid smirk on her face told him she absolutely knew what his true intentions had been.

"Oh well, we were about to come back up anyway. I was just helping Krillin here organize his points to go over in his presentation."

"I'm sure you were," Lapis said with a sneer.

"What's that supposed to mean, dear brother.?"

Inwardly, Lazuli was enjoying herself immensely. To be fair, if it hadn't been for Goku's loud voice carrying down the hallway, Lapis might have walked into a very different situation. But as he did not, it felt amazing to rub that little fact into his face.

"Forget you, let's just go back to the conference room, they are waiting for us."

"Sounds like a plan."

She stood up and joined the rest of them at the door.

"Lead the way."

Lapis just shook his head at her.

"Don't think I don't know what you were doing in there." He hissed when Krillin and Goku were out of earshot.

"What I was or wasn't doing in there is none of your concern." Lazuli replied.

Krillin was walking next to Goku but didn't hear a word he was saying. His heart was still beating erratically. They'd almost got caught in a quite compromising position. He didn't think he could have faced Lapis ever again if that had happened. He glanced backward nervously. Lazuli and her brother seemed to be in some kind of heated discussion.

The group came to a halt before Conference room 2. Krillin let out a sigh, holding open the door so everyone could pass.

Lazuli gave him a wink before sitting down at the long table. Krillin waited for her brother to enter next but Lapis didn't step forward, instead, he gave him a look that made him nervous instantly.

"What is it?"

"You've got lipstick all over your mouth, you know that right?" He said with a smirk. Krillin felt his face burn up as he frantically wiped at his lips with his hand.

"I was just joking, but you just proved my point, little man." Lapis cackled, giving a little wave.

"Better hurry up, don't want to make a bad impression on your first presentation do you?"

Krillin let out another sigh, the remainder of the day was going to be a long one, he already knew as he stepped into the brightly lit room, closing the door behind him.
***
End. Thank you for reading! Feedback is always appreciated!