It was a known fact that Son Goku was poor at keeping in touch with his friends. His knowledge of the Instant Transmission didn't exactly provide him with the best excuse in the world for skipping out on seeing his friends either. He was a Super Saiyan, which meant he had super speed; not only was he a Super Saiyan, but he was also a Super Saiyan 2 and 3. He didn't just have access to the Flying Nimbus, but he also had a driver's license with a car.
So again, he couldn't provide his friends with an excuse as to why he never bothered to visit them, unless he counted the fact that he was either: engaged in some heavily needed catching up with his family, training, or, in most cases, dead.
And if the stated reasons weren't very good reasons as to why he never bothered visiting, then the newly discovered one certainly was.
He was facing marital problems.
So it was all with that last thought in mind that Goku flew to the serene beauty of the tiny little get-away stranded out at sea, with its dancing palm tree and beautiful, yet quaint, pink and red house stationed in the middle of its sandy front, the words "Kame House" printed so eloquently in big, bold, red letters on its forehead. Soft waves rocked the sandy shores, sea critters played peek-a-boo through the salty waters, and a crowd of seagulls flew by every few hours, the intensity of the sun's warm rays beaming down and allowing their shadows to grace the grounds.
Goku was so accustomed to seeing little to nothing but water surrounding the house that he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows when he noticed not one, but two hover cars parked in the rear of the house. The fresh scent of sweet barbecue wafted in the air and Goku found himself captivated by the aroma as his nostrils flared, the burning desire for food blocking out all thoughts of seeing his best friend.
The minute Goku touched base on the island, he made a beeline for the front door, where he immediately brought up a hand and knocked.
Goku raised an eyebrow when he received a series of short grunts and not a second after did he hear Krillin's voice, his tone filled with annoyance.
"Door's open!"
The warrior peeled back the door, his eyebrows still quirked with confusion, and he poked his head inside. Gracing his view was Krillin, who was sprawled out over the table that framed the small den area, and in his hands was a large, black garbage bag. An onslaught of beer bottles, paper plates and cups decorated not only the table, but most of the floor and couch as well and from the looks of it, Goku could very well tell that Krillin was cleaning up what was most likely a very big mess.
From where the Earth's savior stood, he could see images of something or another flash across the television screen, its sounds and music making its journey across the house and into his ears. Figures. It was nothing but another one of Master Roshi's silly aerobics tapes.
"Goku?" the monk called, rubbing his head as he stood erect. "Well I'll be darned! What brings you out here?" he asked, maneuvering around the couch with a smile. "The boys finally decided to give you a break or did Chi-Chi kick you out of the house again?"
Goku chuckled nervously while scratching the back of his head. "Well actually, what if I said it was a little of both? I actually came here for some help, but ...," he trailed off, his eyes shifting from the garbage bag in his friend's hand to the guests scattered across the floor near the table. Their faces, especially Yamcha, that were most likely tickled red from drinking, were buried in the floor, except for Master Roshi, whose head was shielded by a lamp post, and Oolong, who had one of the Turtle Hermit's prized possessions (a dirty magazine) covering his entire face excluding his ears.
The fighter looked back at his friend. "What happened here?"
Krillin sighed and if he could pinch the bridge of his non-existent nose, he most certainly would have. "The girls are out right now, so Oolong decided to show up unannounced with Yamcha in tow. As you can clearly see, I got stuck playing babysitter for a bunch of drunken idiots," Krillin explained with sagging shoulders, bending over to pick up a lone plastic cup. "But enough about my problems; you said you needed advice, right? Well, Goku, if it's advice you want, then you've come to the right place."
Goku offered his best friend one of his many world-renown smiles before his nose perked up, the smell of food permeating his senses yet again. "Before we talk ...," Goku started off idly. "Do you have something good to eat? I smell barbecue."
Krillin slapped a palm to his forehead, bending over to pick up more trash before he laughed. "You're still the same bottomless pit after all these years, I see. Lucky for you, I just ate. Help yourself to the leftovers in the fridge. The drinks are in the cooler by the sink. In the meantime, I'll just clean up this me- Goku?" Krillin looked around, taking note of the fact that his childhood friend was no where to be seen. That was, until the monk heard the hustle and bustle of dishes and utensils from the kitchen, followed closely behind by Goku's giddy laughter.
He sighed, stepping back towards the drunken guests of the house before he began collecting empty beer bottles again. "Mention food and he's no where to be seen," Krillin grumbled with a laugh.
...
Tired and aching.
Tired and covered in flour.
Sweaty and bathed in grime. And just so gosh darned tired!
Chi-Chi wiped the perspiration that tickled her forehead with the back of her hand and plopped down into one of the many chairs that framed the kitchen table. Who knew apologizing could be so much work!
Chi-Chi knew that her pride would never allow her to express her sentiments to her husband in the form of words (not unless she was screaming her lungs out anyway or crying). She always thought that she got her point across through cooking, committing her time to accomplishing subtle favors, or more often than not, performing a layer of sweet offerings in the privacy of their bedroom.
She commended herself on deciding to perform such an action, because not only was her festive preparation a means to make up for her - looking back on it - silly confrontation with Goku yesterday, but it also helped take her mind off of the grueling events that unfolded in the last days. She needed something to focus on other than her marriage and cooking was just the way to do it.
Often in the past, the housewife found herself divulged in something, anything that could take her mind off of her husband's death. Those seven years had been tough on, not only her, but their son, who had spent the better part of those years wallowing in both depression and guilt. If she wasn't scrubbing something down or obsessing over an item that just seemed so out of place, then she was cooking (and excessively so) or comforting Gohan, which, oddly, seemed to help her through most of her problems.
But that was neither here nor there and, as such, Chi-Chi eyeballed her accomplishments with nothing short of a smile.
Steam nipped at all four corners of the table as it poured from an unfathomably large bowl of rice, seasoned and speckled with spices and peas as well as with another variety of add-ons. Savory meats, whether it be fried, baked, grilled or bathed in a homemade sauce, from fish and chicken to beef and - dare she say it - dinosaur, surrounded the bowl of rice like an army waiting to ambush its enemy. Potatoes Au Gratin, drizzled in a blend of cheeses, hugged a basket of buns, whose hair was coated in a thin layer of butter.
Soups simmered in the pots on the stove like lava in a volcano and, like icing on top of a cake, Chi-Chi was preparing one of Goku's favorite desserts - a two-tier cake shielded in a fresh coat of homemade whipped cream frosting with a trail of strawberries mounting its back.
All in all, it was a feast fit for a king! Her king.
Chi-Chi couldn't wait to see the look on Goku's face when he returned home. Just thinking about it made her feel as if she were a newly wed!
With an added pep in her step, she stood up from her seat and set an immediate path for the restroom. If Goku was her king, then she was his queen and being covered in sweat, grime, and flour was not the way she wanted to present herself to him when he made his voyage home.
And with that thought in mind, she happily cleaned herself off with thoughts of Goku filling her senses.
...
Goku released a loud belch as he tossed the last of his finished barbecue chicken onto his plate. He had honestly forgot what a home-style barbecue tasted like and devouring the leftovers that Krillin offered him reminded him of one of the many reasons why he missed Earth so much. One just couldn't get meals as fine as this in Otherworld. As good of a cook as King Kai and Bubbles were, nothing could surmount to the decadent morsels that Earthlings prepared.
"Man!" Goku exclaimed, stretching out his muscles before patting his stomach. "Compliments to the chef! I haven't had a meal that good since I died!"
"Thank you," Krillin replied once he stepped into the kitchen. His eyes nearly flew from their sockets when he saw the mess that his best friend had made and he immediately found himself laughing. "It's a good thing you used paper plates or else I don't know what I'd do! You Saiyans are like bottomless pits, I swear," the monk bellowed, shoveling Goku's trash into the garbage-filled bag that he carried in his hands before tossing it in the large trash bin stationed a few feet away from the dishwasher.
Goku burst into laughter after he wiped his face with the napkin around his neck. "Where did you learn how to cook like that!" the warrior exclaimed, tossing his food-covered towelette onto the table.
Krillin colored red at Goku's question, clearly embarrassed, and coughed into his hand as a means to rid himself of the burning sensation that haunted his cheeks. "What's all this talk about advice?" the black-haired fighter questioned, changing the subject.
Goku brought his hands down to his lap as he settled down, the vibrant expression that was on his face falling into an awkward smile. Krillin pulled up a chair to the table, concern etched across his face much like how one's grandmother frets over her grandchildren.
"Can I ask you something, Krillin?" Goku asked, his eyebrows knitted together in concentration.
In response to the fighter's question, Krillin chuckled. "You already did, bro. But hey, why not?"
Goku twisted his lip and if Krillin could guess, he'd say that the Son patriarch was really putting a lot of thought into his question. "What do you think of me and Chi-Chi?"
Now that was definitely not something the monk was expecting!
"Huh?" he responded, his eyebrows flying to his hairline.
Goku burst into a round of laughter, his hand flying to the back of his head in response. "Something told me not to ask you that." Krillin released an awkward chuckle, but when he saw that Goku didn't say anything in return, his eyes nearly bogged out of their sockets.
"Wait, you're serious, aren't you?" Krillin inquired. "Hmm ...," he thought aloud, bringing up his hand to stroke his chin. "I think you guys are ... well, you're both ... let's see ..."
Goku waited patiently for his comrade's answer; when he received nothing for a long period of time but fumbling words and half-put-together phrases, he found himself getting ready to say "forget I asked".
"Wait, what's this all about anyway!" Krillin shouted, his hands flailing in front of his stout body as if he were deflecting an unwanted attack. "You asked for help, not a counseling session! What's Chi-Chi got to do with any of this?"
"Well," Goku took a deep breath, cracking a grin at his best friend as nervous laughter bubbled from his throat. "Turns out I'm not married thanks to Raditz and Cell and Chi-Chi's been like a walking time bomb for the last few days! I wanna remarry her, ya know, make her happy again 'cuz I really hate seeing her cry. I guess ... I mean, what do ya think?"
Krillin stared at Goku for what felt like an eternity and to say that it was making him nervous would've been an understatement.
It was a known fact that Son Goku never talked about relationships, let alone his marital status. As a matter of fact, Krillin honestly believed that Goku was pretty private when it came to issues with his wife ... er ... ex-wife. He'd had the privilege of seeing some of their relationship from when he had spent those last couple of days over at their house before Goku parted to the afterlife. Majority or rather all of their friends had viewed Chi-Chi in such a negative light and he was no exception. When he first met Chi-Chi when they were teenagers, he thought she was a pretty decent person. She was pretty, beautiful even, and she seemed like she had a good head on her shoulders and she was an awesome fighter to boot.
But then came that impromptu proposal from Goku due to a forgotten promise he made when they were children. Everyone knew that Goku was as loyal as a lion was to its lioness and when the fighter made a promise, he always kept his promise, but Krillin couldn't help but think that Chi-Chi somehow manipulated Goku into marrying her. The man didn't even know what "marriage" and "bride" meant and who could blame him? Goku was always out on his own; he pretty much raised himself all his life! The closest thing he's had to a father-figure after the death of his grandfather was Master Roshi, but hell, the Turtle Hermit's view of women wasn't exactly the most positive of views (although, Krillin was thankful that Goku hadn't picked up any of their old master's traits in regards to that aspect).
Krillin didn't have anything against Chi-Chi, not in the least bit. As a matter of fact, he rather liked her because she reminded him a lot of his own wife. But, he simply didn't think it was fair of her to show up in Goku's life after Kami knows how many years and dump the idea of marriage onto his back like a master did its mule.
"Piccolo thinks that I should marry her," Goku blurted, genuine laughter rolling from his throat.
"Whoa, you went to Piccolo for advice!" Krillin hollered, causing Goku to jump.
Goku smiled. "Yeah; I mean, it's not like it'd hurt or anything. And Piccolo thinks that we deserve each other; he called us both idiots."
"The "idiot" part sounds a lot like something he'd say alright," Krillin muttered before smiling at his best friend. "But I never pictured that guy being the type to give anyone advice on anything, especially something like marriage. He's as serious as Vegeta when it comes to stuff like that. I'm surprised he didn't curse you; Kami knows Piccolo is more emotionally constipated than a child that's ate too much cheese."
Both fighters promptly burst into a ring of laughter, their loud voices reaching the ears of the sleeping guests sprawled out on the floor of the television room.
When they both calmed down, Krillin sent Goku an awkward smile before he released a deep-rooted sigh. "Listen Goku," he started off, earning the attention of the world's savior. "When I first met Chi-Chi, I didn't think it was fair that you married her. It was like she forced you to do it; you didn't even know what it meant to be married and to me, it's like she played with your emotions. You're a loyal guy, ya know? And I've never seen you back away from a promise."
"I guess what I'm trying to say is, don't marry her just because that's what she wants. Marry her because that's what you want. I've no doubt in my mind that you love her because hey, how many men do you know that would die for their wives? Twice?"
Whether or not Krillin gave Goku the answer he wanted to hear, Goku tossed the monk a genuine smile and in return Krillin did the same
[Reviews - 0]Chapter or Story
Table of Contents
- Text Size +