—Trunks POV—
With those monsters, those heartless androids finally eliminated, there was now some peace in that desolate and destroyed land I called home… or rather, a sepulchral silence.
The object of my greatest admiration and praise, my mentor Gohan, used to tell me stories by the fire about a time when things weren’t like this. Not even the flames we warmed our worn-out hands by could replicate the warmth of the world he described… a world that ceased to exist for no reason, due to the whim of machines that felt nothing but boredom.
He used to say, with his always calm voice, which is forever etched in my mind, that you could hear the birds singing, the murmur of people passing by, the vehicles on roads that no longer existed… He said we had to bring back all those sounds, all that life.
Among all those sounds, the only one I ever knew was his voice, which was like the sun around which my solar system revolved. Whenever I felt fear, I was crushed by the gravity until I reached Gohan. The fire didn’t replicate the warmth of the world my senses never knew, but perhaps, his smile did.
Then… his heart stopped beating. My eyes produced a transparent liquid when they were stimulated by my planet losing its orbit and ending up in the range of a supernova’s explosion, turning it to dust. I floated in the blackness of space, directionless, without light.
But the time came when my mother finished the time machine. I grew stronger as I traveled to the past, and in my hands appeared the possibility of changing my present.
I turned the androids into dust. I completed the mission. But it’s not true, I didn’t, not yet.
I couldn’t waste any more time.
It took my mother and me about fifty-one days to build a spaceship to travel to New Namek. My heart raced twice as fast as normal while I hugged my mother goodbye.
I boarded the spaceship alone, but if everything went as expected, when I returned, the Z fighters and the victims of the androids would be back, revived by the Namekian Dragon Balls.
The trip took about two weeks, five days, and twenty-seven minutes. I spent much of that time keeping my brain busy with logistics. Where would all the revived people go, what would they eat, how would they handle having been dead? According to the plan, after reviving Piccolo, we would use Earth’s Dragon Balls to take care of the basic needs of the ‘new Earthlings.’
The rest of the time, though I wanted to avoid it, I was plagued by thoughts of Gohan. Would he be proud of me? What would he think of the warrior I’ve become? Would his smile and eyes still be as nice to see as always? Would his hair still look so illogically soft?
The idea of Gohan being back with me gave me goosebumps.
***
Finally, the day came when I landed on New Namek. The new Namekian planet, despite being another, looked quite similar to how my mother had described the original place. A green and bright sky, lots of green on the ground as well, tall trees with round tops, mountains and hills, shimmering water… When I got off, I took a moment to appreciate the scenery, closed my eyes, and took a breath in the breeze. I felt the pollen of some nearby flowers enter my nose, and naturally, I sneezed. Then, I opened my eyes, feeling… different. As if I was aware of every part of my body all at once.
But I had to hurry; it was time to find the Grand Elder Namekian.
Finding his tower wasn’t difficult at all. Some Namekians guarding the place gave me a hostile look, which I couldn’t blame them for; they’d had horrible experiences with foreigners like me in the past. I vowed and said I came in peace to request permission to use the Dragon Balls. One of the guards murmured something about not detecting any evil energy, and they let me enter the chamber where the Grand Elder resided. While I walked inside, the one holding the door glanced at me with something in between pity and curiosity.
“Doku no shikaza? Nazu nippon juu koru ka,” he told the other.
“Ura kasha zeta. Ika gila budda oshi, heh…”
What were they babbling about?… Anyway, I wobbled as I approached the throne where the Grand Elder sat, still feeling strange.
“Hmm… greetings, I see that you are… an Earthling?” he asked me.
“Greetings, yes, sir, though I’m half Saiyan.”
“Ah, that’s why you look so affected. Namek’s flora usually has a negative effect on those from Earth.”
“Negative effects?” I asked.
“That’s right.” As the elder said this simple answer, a Namekian entered through one of the arches at the back, carrying a small, delicate white pot with the most beautiful flowers I had ever seen.
I had to take a moment to appreciate them, their triangular, transparent, and shiny petals. That gentle Namekian placed the crystal pot in my hands, and suddenly, all the anxiety I didn’t even know I had bottled up left my throat in a breath. I felt uneasy then, not wanting to ask if it was some sort of drug?
Then, the Namekian smiled at me, as if reading my mind, and explained.
“It’s not. It’s just that, as our Grand Elder said, the flowers have a strong effect on the emotional ki of Earthlings. But this flower, the Raunuka, usually stabilizes it when kept nearby.”
I stayed silent. Emotional ki? What were they talking about?
“Uh… Thank you. Grand Elder, I have come here to request the use of this planet’s Dragon Balls to rebuild mine, which was destroyed when I was just a child,” I explained, “I don’t intend to steal them like those who came before me; it’s just that, with no Dragon Balls left on my planet, I have no other option but to come here.”
After I said the words I had practiced so much, the elder attentively nodded and decided to lend me the Namekian Dragon Balls so I could rebuild Earth.
The sky darkened as if an eclipse had suddenly occurred, and with the help of the Namekian who had gifted me those flowers, the dragon was summoned. Two wishes were made: to revive everyone killed by the androids and to return them all to Earth…
On the trip back to Earth, I felt even more overwhelmed by nervousness than before. However, having brought that beautiful Namekian flower with me, the Raunuka, just looking at it calmed me down.
As I carefully touched the petals with my fingers, and counted them, one, two, three… all kinds of good memories came to mind. That moment of relief after defeating the androids… That moment when my mother and I built the spaceship I was on, something we had no chance to do before… Happy moments were, unfortunately, scarce in my existence, but I knew that upon returning to a world teeming with life, they would multiply. Six, seven, eight…
I was soon able to establish contact with my planet via the communicator on the spaceship’s bridge. I smiled as I saw my mother on the other side of the screen, her eyes brighter than ever with joy.
“Hi! You did it, Trunks! Everyone is here, finally! I’m so proud of you.”
“Really, Mom? Everyone… Everyone is there?”
“Yes, honey. The torment is finally over…”
My mother then moved her communicator to the other side of the room she was in (the living room of the house), and immediately, my heart stopped.
My father, Vegeta… Piccolo… Tien, Chaoz… Yamcha… Krillin, Master Roshi… and my master, Gohan, were there.
“I knew you’d do it,” Gohan said, his smile missing its usual sadness.
He looked just like how I remembered him. Perhaps even brighter than before. I listened to each of his words intently, as if his voice were water in the middle of a desert.
I couldn’t stop my eyes from getting wet, and as I brought my hand to my smiling lips, my chest shook with sobs of relief. All the fear, uncertainty and helplessness I felt every second of my life ran down my face like tears, falling to the white tiles of the floor.
“I always wanted to see you all, and the world, again. And I missed you every day, Gohan… I’m so happy…”
My mother looked at me with a smile, her eyes were red too.
“We are too. Finally, everything is okay… Thanks to you.”
“When you get back, Trunks, we’ll throw a big party,” Gohan said, “We’ve already restored Earth’s Dragon Balls and used them to rebuild the planet… So we’ll be able to eat everything a Saiyan needs, right, Mr. Vegeta?”
My father huffed.
“I haven’t eaten in decades; my appetite is twice as big as that of a Saiyan right now.”
Through my crying, which was already fading, I let out a shaky laugh.
“Oh, Vegeta, you better leave enough food for everyone, or I’ll send you back to the other world,” my mother said.
My father’s eyes widened and he flinched in alarm. As if trying to hide his previous reaction, he crossed his arms.
“Hmph, okay, but only because you asked me to.”
***
During the two weeks of the trip back to my home, I spent my time training my movements, and also my mental strength.
As I sat with my knees touching the ground, my hands resting on them and my back straight, I opened my eyes and looked out the large window of the spaceship, through which I could see the blackness of space. The stars in the distance shone brightly, and I could feel myself connecting with the universe.
Being connected to my mind and emotions, I remembered what the Namekians had told me about ’emotional ki.’ I wondered, once again, what they were referring to with that.
Then suddenly I coughed. I brought my hand to my mouth and my shoulders shook; the coughing didn’t stop for several seconds and it felt like the back of my throat was being scraped.
I inhaled sharply, and afterwards I was able to breathe again.
As I lowered my hand, I felt something brush against my palm. I looked down… and there I was holding a small petal. Its glitter-like shine had spread all over my hand, it was identical to my Raunuka flower’s, but at what point had I torn off a petal?
In confusion, I looked at the potted flower, which was sitting near the control panel buttons on the coaster—its petals appeared to be intact.
The confusion faded as I looked at it; it still had that great effect on my emotions. I quickly returned to my meditation position; it must have dropped a petal while I was watering it, and I only noticed it then.
***
Finally, I returned to Earth after what felt like an eternity. I landed at Capsule Corp, and was pleasantly surprised to see that it had been rebuilt.
The door to the spaceship, which was also the landing ramp, opened, and I walked down it.
Everyone was waiting for me at the entrance of the corporation. My mother, who was holding a bottle of red wine, opened it with excitement.
“Welcome back, Trunks!” she exclaimed loudly as the others clapped and cheered.
But then, a wave of bubbling foam erupted from the tip of the bottle. As if it was an attack, the warriors quickly moved out of the way to avoid being hit by the foam, which began to lose strength and instead began to fall on my mother’s clothes. I ran to help her and grabbed the bottle, which only resulted in my clothes becoming covered in dark red as well.
Eventually, the foam ran out, and I stood still for a few seconds, looking at my stained clothes. Silence hung in the air, with everyone staring at me with wide eyes.
Yamcha was the first to let out a laugh, and then everyone present joined in, with joy spreading throughout the place like the foam.
My mother, meanwhile, was examining her white dress, which now had a red stain that was impossible to hide. She was frowning so hard that a vein on her forehead could have popped, but she couldn’t help but smile too, sharing a laugh with everyone after so much suffering.
“Where did you get this wine, Yamcha?” she said as she turned to enter Capsule Corp, sliding the door open.
***
We walked into the hall, decorated with balloons, fairy lights, and colorful flag decorations. There was a big letter sign that read, ‘Welcome back, Earth!’
I was shocked to see the room was filled with people I didn’t know. Filled with people who hadn’t been alive before.
“Mom, how many people did you invite? Where did all these people come from?”
My mother had already changed from her white dress to a blue suit, and with a drink in her hand, she replied: “I invited the whole city, son, this should be celebrated by everyone. Here, change your shirt for this one, you can’t be at the party with such a stain.”
“Oh… Okay.”
After changing, I leaned against a wall and watched the party for a while. I could hear the murmur of people talking. Laughing. Some were dancing to the music in the background. The music. I was listening to music at that moment.
My throat tightened. Humanity was truly back…
Then, a voice brought me out of my thoughts. I looked up to see who was calling me, it was Gohan.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to dance?”
“I don’t know… no, I’ve never danced before.”
Gohan gave me a big grin.
“It’s not that different from training,” Gohan extended his hand towards me, “Shall we?”
“…Sure,” I replied with a surprised smile, taking his hand.
As we walked toward the dance floor, I stared at our intertwined hands. His had always been larger, but now, there wasn’t much of a difference… as I thought about it, I realized how much I had wanted to hold his hand all along.
As soon as I got used to that warmth, we reached the dance floor and he let go of my hand to get into position to dance.
“Ready? Just follow my lead,” he said lightheartedly.
“All right, master,” I replied in the same tone.
We jumped and laughed, our feet pounding the floor in time to the music. For a few moments, the rest of the world disappeared, and it was just me and Gohan… but not in a bleak way like before. It was just me and Gohan, and the world was bright and safe, and in that moment, I felt alive as I felt my heart pounding in my chest.
I found myself engrossed in watching Gohan’s smile as he danced with me, so engrossed that I tripped over my own foot, and nearly fell to the floor… before he caught me by the shoulders.
For a moment he held me, said something about how I danced quite well for my first time, but all I focused on was how close we were at that moment.
Blood rushed to my face, making it turn red, and I took a step back. What was it that I was feeling?
Gohan, too, stood still for a moment, looking away and scratching his nose.
“It’s true that it’s not that different from training,” I said to break the silence, “It’s just a lot more embarrassing.”
Gohan laughed.
“Don’t worry, no one’s an expert in dancing here. I’m so happy to be able to share this with you.”
“Me too.”
***
A while later, the music ended, and Gohan and I sat down at a table after ordering some food from the buffet: generous portions of rice, fish tacos, chicken and vegetable skewers, among many other things. Plates piled up on the table as we ordered more things; the menu was free for all for today.
After three rounds, we sighed with happiness, no longer hungry.
“Man, how long has it been since I ate so much delicious food?” Gohan said.
“Same… I won’t have to eat dog food anymore,” I replied while drinking some water.
“…I didn’t know things had gotten that bad,” he said with some concern, then leaned toward me with his elbow on the table. “Hey, Trunks. Before you got here, we were touring Capsule Corp.”
“And what did you see?”
“I don’t know if you know this yet, but you now have a personal movie theater in your house,” he said excitedly, “We’ve never been able to watch movies. I only told you about the ones I could watch before the Androids when we had some quiet time, remember?”
I raised my eyebrows in surprise. Having been at the party, I hadn’t had time to see the renovation of the building.
“Yes, you were pretty good at explaining the plotlines to me.”
“And now we can watch real movies. You have to invite me.”
“Of course! Do you want to come tomorrow to see one of the movies you told me about?”
“That would be great.”
“Perfect, you deserve a movie night.”
“ You deserve it, Mr. savior of Earth,” he corrected me, pointing to the sign I had seen when I entered the room hours ago.
He was proud of me. It was everything I could’ve ever wanted. I couldn’t help but blush, and cough, once more. I guessed the latter was because of all the pressure of these last days?
“You call me a savior… but I could’ve never gotten this far without you. Being able to bring everyone back one day… and being able to see you again one day, that’s what kept me going. So… thanks, Gohan.”
“You gave me strength too. I didn’t make it to the end like you did, but…”
“…That doesn’t matter. You’re here now.”
“That’s true.”
Then, Gohan put his arm around me, hugging me. Not even the Raunuka flower could have made me feel so much peace.
I knew, then, that this was the beginning of a new life, with no constant despair. A beautiful life.
After a few moments, we stopped hugging. I couldn’t help but keep smiling at the thought that, the next day, we’d be watching a movie. Gohan seemed to be thinking the same, as he stared off toward a spot on the table, fiddling with a strand of hair on his forehead, not saying a word.
It was silly, but I was genuinely relieved he could do that again.
“I already thought of a movie we could watch,” he said, looking at me. ”Do you remember the one about the boy who travels through time and…?”
“…Really?”
“Ah… Is it too soon?” He laughed. “I can think of another, but I don’t know if you like romantic movies. Let’s see, let’s see…”
“Hm. We could watch Titanic. I’ve always wondered why everyone likes it so much.”
“True. Though, honestly, I don’t know how we’ll get the theater to work.”
“We should ask my mom how to project the movie-”
“-But first, we need to decide what movie to watch.”
After a few minutes of planning for tomorrow, Gohan changed the subject.
“By the way, Trunks… don’t you think it’s time you met my master?”
“You mean Piccolo, right?”
“Mm-hmm. I’m sure he’ll be proud. After all, I taught you how to fight based on what he taught me,” Gohan said with a rare smug smile.
***
We searched for Piccolo at the party, but he was nowhere to be found. It didn’t surprise us too much; Piccolo didn’t seem like the kind of person who’d enjoy a party. Sensing his ki, which was faint due to his peaceful state, I realized he was probably somewhere in the yard.
“Seems like he’s outside," I told Gohan, ”Let’s go.”
Sure enough, when we stepped outside, Piccolo was meditating in the air, observing the party lights from above. Gohan raised his hand.
“Mister Piccolo!”
Piccolo opened his eyes at the sound of Gohan’s voice and looked down. Soon, he descended to the ground, arms crossed. He smiled, revealing his fangs, though the smile was so genuine it wasn’t intimidating at all.
”Hello, Gohan. And hello to you, who must be…” He glanced at me briefly. “Vegeta’s son, right?”
I nodded and bowed, with my hair falling over my face.
“That’s right, sir. It’s an honor to meet you.”
Piccolo chuckled.
"Ah, so polite… Nothing like your father."
I smiled nervously as I straightened up.
”Thanks…”
It was true my father had… a temper, but after meeting him in the past, I hoped I could get along with him.
“That’s true," Gohan added, “But don’t you have something else to say?”
“Indeed… I heard you saved our world, kid. You traveled to the past to grow stronger and defeat the androids here, and you and your mother even found New Namek. How are things there, by the way?”
“You could say that. I’m just glad all of you are back, sir. And everything’s fine on Namek; they rebuilt their society quickly.”
“That’s good. And in the past? How… is Goku?”
When he said that last part, his voice softened slightly, and for a moment, I recognized myself in his expression. Piccolo surely missed his old friend.
The younger Gohan from the past knew what had happened. The Goku of the other timeline had also died, sacrificing himself to defeat Cell. I didn’t want to lie, but wouldn’t the truth hurt them even more?
Piccolo narrowed his eyes as he noticed my hesitation, so I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
“He’s fine, sir. I gave him the medicine in time, so he won’t die,” I said. My throat tightened as I recalled Goku’s sacrifice, but the words came out anyway.
Gohan’s and Piccolo’s eyes lit up.
“That’s amazing!” Gohan exclaimed with a triumphant smile.
He quickly threw his arms around me in a hug while Piccolo watched, smiling.
“Thank you so much, Trunks! You saved him! My dad… at least, there’s a world where he can keep living his crazy life, taking care of me and my mom…”
I wrapped my arms around Gohan, frowning. It pained me deeply to know none of that would happen… but if Gohan was happy, I would gladly carry the burden of the truth.
Then Gohan let me go, his eyes shining. Had he cried? I had never seen him like that.
Seeing my expression, he seemed surprised too.
“Good work,” Piccolo said, “You plan to keep training, right? And you too, Gohan. We must never let our guard down again.”
I nodded without hesitation.
“Of course. We have to protect this world now that it can finally have happiness,” I said as I closed my fists with determination, and then I looked at Gohan, hoping he agreed.
Gohan remained silent, his expression serious.
“Uh…”
Before Gohan could speak, my mother appeared.
”What are you doing out here, guys?” she called from the door, motioning us to come inside. “I’ve been looking for you. We’re taking a group photo, come in!”
***
We quickly returned to Capsule Corp. The other warriors were gathered under a banner to pose for the picture.
”Trunks, it’s great to meet you,” Krillin said cheerfully as I approached to join them.
“Yeah, you don’t know how grateful we are,” added Yamcha.
Behind him, Tien thanked me as well, and also Chiaotzu, who floated nearby to get a better look at me. My face turned red with embarrassment; I wasn’t used to so much attention.
“Leave him alone, you pests.”
Startled, I looked up. My father had entered the room, arms crossed. Like Gohan, Vegeta stood beside me for the photo. I stared at him for a moment, which irritated him.
“Stop staring at me like that. What, do I have three heads? Pose for the photo!”
Gohan, standing between us, scratched his chin and laughed.
“S-sorry, Father.”
Yamcha stood next to Tien, his arm over his shoulder, while Chiaotzu perched on Tien’s other shoulder, flashing a peace sign. Krillin stood next to Gohan, who had his arm around my shoulder. I grinned awkwardly at the camera, not sure how to pose. Then, my mother set the timer on the camera and quickly joined my father, wrapping her arm around his.
“Say cheese!” my mother exclaimed.
“Cheese!”
Click.
***
And hours later, the party ended.
As the guests left, shuffling their feet over the confetti on the floor, I swept the room with a broom. My mother was exhausted, slumped on the couch as though she hadn’t slept in a thousand years. Considering all we’d been through, that wasn’t too far from the truth.
I was focused on trying to sweep some stubborn crumbs into the dustpan when I felt someone’s gaze on me. I looked up. Once again, it was my father. He was staring at me so seriously that it sent a chill down my spine.
“Trunks,” he began, “You’re my son, and the first time I get to see you properly is when you’re already an adult. Not only that, but you’re also a Super Saiyan who defeated the androids that killed me and everyone else.”
“Yes… It’s good to finally meet you, Father.”
Effortlessly ignoring my response, my father rushed toward me like a bullet, aiming to punch me in the face. In what felt like slow motion, I saw his gloved fist coming towards me and moved aside to dodge it, making sure not to knock over the cleaning tools.
Seeing me dodge his attack with ease, he returned to his normal stance.
“It’s obvious that, as the son of the Prince of all Saiyans, you’d be the only warrior strong enough to defeat those pieces of junk. But don’t get cocky because soon I’ll surpass you!” he declared and then turned to leave.
I stared at him, stunned. Was this his strange way of saying… he was proud of my strength?
“We’ll see. I’ll keep training, and soon, we can have a duel,” I replied with a smile.
He smiled back at me before walking out the door. Through the window, I saw him take off into the sky, probably to start training immediately. I sighed. He really wasn’t going to take a single day off…
And then, I heard footsteps. It was the Z Fighters, who were now drunk and about to leave Capsule Corp.
”See ya,” Krillin slurred, dragging his words. Yamcha was supporting him to keep him from falling and wrinkled his nose as he spoke.
“Ugh, you smell awful, man,” Yamcha said, “Thanks for the party, Trunks. And for everything.”
”It’s my pleasure.”
Tien and Chiaotzu followed behind them.
“Someday we should spar. I’d like to see how strong you are,” Tien said, raising two fingers to his forehead. “Goodbye.”
I waved happily as they left through the door, only to realize Gohan hadn’t left yet. Where was he?
***
I searched for his ki. Like Piccolo earlier (who had left the party before the others out of boredom), he was outside somewhere.
I found him on the balcony, sitting at a table with a glass of water in his hand, staring at the sky. He was probably still thinking about his father. Guilt hit me, but I truly couldn’t tell him more about Goku’s situation.
“Gohan.”
Gohan lowered his gaze, flinching slightly in surprise.
“Oh, Trunks. Sorry, it’s pretty late for me to still be here, isn’t it?”
“Don’t worry, you’ve stayed here plenty of times before. It’s no trouble.” I walked over and sat next to him. “What’s on your mind?”
“Well...” He paused. “It’s strange to think we don’t have to fight all the time anymore, isn’t it? I mean, of course, we should keep training, but… you know. Without so much pressure.”
“Yeah… That’s exactly what you and I fought for,” I said happily.
Gohan smiled at me, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.
“And what are you going to do now, Trunks? As for me… I plan to go back to my studies.”
I crossed my arms and looked up thoughtfully. I hadn’t really stopped to think about that.
“Uh… I want to keep training.”
Gohan’s smile turned playful.
“That’s great! But you should avoid being a freeloader like your dad.”
I shrunk into myself, feeling my face flush with embarrassment again.
“Hey… I think I’ve done enough for now,” I protested.
Gohan laughed. He’d said that on purpose, no doubt.
“By the way, how was Namek? Did you bring back a souvenir or something?”
“Actually… Yeah, I brought back a beautiful flower, but I think I left it on the spaceship. I’ll show it to you later.”
“Cool. By the way…”
“Yeah?”
Gohan looked away from me, staring instead at his glass.
“I’ve been thinking… My dad… he’s not alive in the reality you went to, is he?”
“What? Um… I…” I stammered, ”Uh… no, he’s not. I’m sorry. I thought it’d be better if you didn’t know the truth… How did you figure out I was lying?”
“Trunks, we’ve known each other our whole lives. I know when something affects you, when you’re happy, when you’re lying.”
“…I’m sorry.”
”No, I really appreciate it. You value honesty, don’t you? But you chose to lie because it would make me happy… That’s something you wouldn’t do in any other situation.” He placed his hand over mine. “You really are… a great friend.”
My eyes widened, and I smiled.
“Thanks. You are too.”
Gohan and I looked at each other for a moment. Then he let go of my hand.
“I should get going. I had a great time today.” He stood up from the chair. “See you tomorrow night!”
“See you!”
I watched him leave, and then that irritating cough returned. This time, it was more painful, and I felt like I was choking, so I grabbed Gohan’s glass of water. After drinking it all, I set the glass on the table and… somehow, there were transparent petals at the bottom.
There was definitely something strange about that Raunuka flower.
And there was definitely something strange about how Gohan made me feel these days.
I examined the petals. This time, they had definitely come out of my mouth! But how?… I decided to return immediately to the spaceship to examine the flower I had left there.
***
Back on there, the Raunuka flower was exactly in the same spot where I had left it. I took the pot and got off the spaceship, then placed it back into the capsule.
‘This strange thing,’ I thought, ‘Is beautiful, but I don’t know if I should have brought it with me.’
My mother had already been to Namek, rather, to the original Namek. I decided that she was the person I should tell about this incomprehensible event, as she was likely to have noted anything noteworthy about Namek, like its flora, when she visited the planet.
***
My mother was sleepily watching a movie on TV in the living room.
“Hey Mom, can I ask you something?”
“Yeah, what’s…?” My mother looked at me, and when her eyes reached the alien pot I was holding, she screamed. “Trunks! What do you have there? Is that a Namekian flower?” she exclaimed, jumping up from the couch.
“Yeah… Is there a problem?”
“Give it to me! And cover your nose and mouth!” she said, taking the pot, doing what she said with her other hand.
I did as she said, confused. She covered the flower with the bowl she had used for popcorn while watching the movie, throwing it onto her precious carpet.
“We’re going to the lab.”
***
And off we went. I stood near the door, watching my mom place the pot on a flat, white platform to analyze it. I recognized this object as the scanner we used to analyze the quality of materials we found to build the time machine, among other things. On a floating, blue holographic screen, she typed something I couldn’t read. All her scientific stuff still made me dizzy, even though I had grown up around it… The flower was scanned all over under a green light, and my mother’s expression changed three times in a row. Negatively, of course.
The scan took several minutes, so I grabbed a chair from a nearby desk and sat down, watching as the scanner light went up and down… Seeing the Raunuka flower still gave me that calming effect, but when the scan ended, and the light turned red as another process began, the effect on me slowly faded and all my anxiety returned, as if what was affecting my emotions was being purged.
“Did you show this flower to anyone else?” she asked seriously, not taking her eyes off the screen. I shook my head, and she continued, “We’re gonna need to do a blood test. I hope you’re not as scared of needles as Goku was.”
“Um… considering your reaction to seeing the flower, Mom, I think a needle is the least of my worries right now…” I said, my stomach in knots.
My mother looked at me with a smile, not of happiness, but of sympathy. She was obviously the person who knew me best in the world, she knew what my biggest fear in life was…
“Don’t worry so much, son, Namekian flowers don’t transmit that serious of diseases,” she said in a soothing tone.
Still, fear slid down my spine like melting ice.
’ Diseases ,’ she said. ‘ Not that serious ,’ she said. Could they be serious in some way? What kind of nature did they have? No, no… anything but an unstoppable disease! What a miserable existence… Negative thoughts appeared in my mind one after another. ‘ I’ll end up dying just like Mr. Goku! Obviously, my good luck wasn’t going to last in this life full of misfortunes—’
My mother realized that my soul left my body after I heard that word, and she turned her back completely to the scanner to look me in the eyes.
“You’ll be fine. Seriously. Your dear mother wouldn’t lie to you about this,” she said, but I had the feeling it was just to calm me down.
“B-b-but what kind of… disease … could I get because of this flower?” I stammered, closing my hands on my lap, my fingers hot with my own sweat.
My mom cleared her throat and crossed her arms, preparing to explain.
“Namekian flowers can transmit a disease called Hanahaki, which is linked to your emotional energy… Like ki, that energy is something we all possess.” She leaned on the scanner as she began her explanation. “These flowers act like a kind of anesthesia for uncontrolled emotional energy. They numb anxiety, pain… but they don’t solve the problems, in fact, they bring more.” To put emphasis, she put one finger up and said, “These flowers have spores that enter your lungs, and they activate when they come into contact with unstable emotional flow. These spores aren’t like Earth’s. Being Namekian, they feed off emotional energy rather than physical nutrients… The spores grow inside the lungs, like flowers, and the flowers will grow faster as your unresolved feelings grow stronger… particularly unrequited love. Eventually, they will obstruct your breathing, which can be fatal if you don’t face those feelings or receive treatment.”
I stared at my mom, eyes wide, jaw dropped, and body paralyzed. I stayed silent. A sepulchral silence, while my heart stopped and my chest grew cold with terror… And then my heart started beating again, frantically, one, two, three, four…
At that moment, I could only formulate one thought.
Why, why did that Namekian give me that damn pot?!
As I breathed heavily, I kept hearing my mom’s words echoing in my mind.
‘The spores grow inside the lungs, like flowers, and the flowers will grow faster as your unresolved feelings grow stronger’… How gross!
‘…particularly unrequited love…’
I inhaled sharply, believing—wanting to believe I found a contradiction.
“…Unrequited love? But… I’m not in love with anyone. So the flowers shouldn’t be growing… I hope.” Before I could finish my last word, I coughed loudly, and my mom looked at me with one eyebrow raised, silently questioning me.
“Well, we’ll see what the situation is when we do the blood test,” she said, starting to gather the necessary things for the procedure from the cabinet. “I see you’ve been coughing?”
I swallowed hard. No… I couldn’t deny the obvious anymore, no matter how much I wished this disaster wasn’t happening…
“Yeah… actually, I wanted to show you the flower because I thought it was strange that I coughed up a petal.”
My mom sighed.
“Oh no, Trunks… It can’t be…” she said, continuing to search. “Tell me, who’s making you feel this way?”
I stayed silent.
Gohan.
“Well…”
Gohan .
“No one.”
My mom sighed even louder. I was about to tell her, embarrassed, what had been going on… until I realized something.
“Wait… how do you know so much about this alien disease?”
My mom took disposable gloves, gauze, alcohol, and a needle from a cabinet.
“I also contracted Hanahaki when I went to Namek…” she began to explain as she placed the things on the desk. “But it took a while before the disease activated for me. At first, it was asymptomatic because I didn’t feel unrequited love for anyone.” She washed her hands at the sink near the scanner and put on the gloves, then sat next to me. I rolled up my sleeve. “And then… I met your father.”
“Ah…” I muttered, clenching my teeth in discomfort.
My mom placed a tourniquet on the top of my arm and cleaned the area she was going to puncture with alcohol.
“Vegeta moved in with me, you were born, all that. But he was always very closed off, he never showed me love… never. And that hurt so much… and triggered the disease.”
Finally, she inserted the needle into the vein for a moment, then pulled it out. She applied the gauze to the puncture and put a small bandage on it.
“And… what did you do to cure it?”
“Your father had to reciprocate my love, and then the flowers disappeared. Shortly after…” Her gaze turned sad. “Your father died while fighting the Androids.”
I frowned, looking at my arm thoughtfully. I didn’t know this part of my family’s history…
“But you have to understand, Trunks,” She moved to place the sample in a test tube. “That I almost lost my life because of Hanahaki. And I won’t let you go through the same.”
“I understand. I… I’ll be fine,” I said seriously.
My mom smiled at me, holding my face with her hands, then kissed me on the forehead.
“I know you’ll be. Don’t be silly and tell Gohan how you feel.”
My face turned red.
“Mom!” I exclaimed, embarrassed, “How… how did you know?”
She winked at me.
“It’s pretty obvious. Now, I need to analyze this sample. Depending on how advanced the Hanahaki is, we’ll have to take different approaches to solve it.” Before the panic could finish reaching my heart at hearing her say my feelings were obvious, she added, “By the way, you can take the flower now since I’ve removed any danger from it.”
I scratched the back of my neck.
“Thanks… It kind of terrifies me now, though…”
A/N: Some notes on this version of Hanahaki.After analyzing the blood sample at that moment, my mother concluded that my Hanahaki was not advanced at all and that I still had several options to consider. First, she gave me some pills to slow down the growth of flowers in my lungs, which she had prepared just in case she ever got Hanahaki again somehow. Her prudence, which could even be called paranoia, had saved me. However, there were only thirty pills in the blister pack.
“Well, Trunks, these are your options. One: you use these thirty safe days you have to be honest about your feelings with him…”
“He doesn’t like me that way though… I’d still end up dying, but of embarrassment,” I said.
“That could actually happen.”
“Wait, what?”
“If you confess your feelings to the person causing your Hanahaki and they don’t return your love, the Hanahaki will worsen, which could lead to death… Yes, I’m serious.”
Hearing that, I put my hand to my forehead, feeling my legs weaken from fear.
“Oh my God, what a melodramatic illness… And what’s the other option?”
“The other option is to manually remove the spores and flowers with nanorobots…”
I lowered my hand to the desk and looked at my mother with hope.
“But…”
I put my hand to my forehead again. Now what?
“…This procedure would permanently affect your emotional ki… it’s likely that by going through it, you would never love again,” she explained.
Who cares about never loving again ! I thought. I won’t allow myself to die; I have to protect the Earth!
“Mom, I can’t risk my life like this… I have to undergo the surgery. Or who will protect all of you if something happens to me?” I said with seriousness in my brows.
My mother, on the other hand, looked at me with sadness.
“I understand that, son, but don’t you think it’s a bit hasty? You can have the surgery immediately, yes. But you wouldn’t love Gohan, me, your father, or the world you want to protect anymore. I’m afraid that without the energy love gives people, no matter what kind of love it is… nothing would matter to you anymore. It would hurt all of us to see you like that…” She crossed her arms thoughtfully. “You might end up like…” She interrupted herself and looked at me.
“…Like Gohan’s mother?”
My mother sighed.
“Yes… she lost everything she ever loved… and you know how depressed she was. Even though Gohan is back and has lived with her these past two weeks… Chi-Chi… I don’t know if she’ll ever be the same. I don’t want that to happen to you. What if Gohan does love you? Why not try that path before risking something… like that?”
I thought for a few moments. I remembered Gohan’s mother… I knew she was angry with my mother and even with me for motivating Gohan to risk his life fighting. Chi-Chi ended up losing everything she held dear… Her life is an example of one without love.
No, I didn’t want to end up like that. But being honest about my feelings was also risky: If I failed and Gohan didn’t see me the way I saw him, I’d die. What should I do then? It seemed as if every path I could take could end me forever…
I had to somehow make Gohan fall in love with me to survive, then.
“Well… I… I’ll try,” I said with no confidence at all, “But if there’s no sign that Gohan loves me before the medicine runs out, I’d better go through with the surgery.”
“Alright.”
My mother hugged me, and I hugged her back tightly. I still had that horrible feeling in my stomach…
“Good luck. Let me know if you feel bad or need anything, okay?”
“Yes, Mom. Thank you.”
I took the first pill, and then I left the lab. It was already quite late. I was exhausted from the party and everything I had discovered… Plus, I had to watch the movie with Gohan the next day, so I needed a good night’s sleep.
***
But I didn’t sleep well at all. In my bed, I lay motionless with my eyes closed, doing my best to breathe calmly. But my fingers were trembling, and I suddenly felt uncomfortable on that mattress. Hours passed and passed, and I saw the darkness of my closed eyes as if I were looking out a window. One thought looped in my mind: I’m going to die… I’m going to die… and I’m going to die in the stupidest way possible…
Then, looping again, I thought to myself: I’ll be fine… I’ll be fine… I have to be…
I tried to calm down, but it was in vain. Why was I still conscious? What time was it?
Restless, I decided to open my eyes, telling myself it was only to check the time. I turned over the clock on my nightstand; it was four in the morning. The sky was a dark orange, and the beautiful flowers in the yard could be seen blooming in that May spring. I pursed my lips. I had never been so disgusted by innocent flowers. But now I knew they could soon be my undoing.
Certain that I wouldn’t fall asleep anyway, I got up and turned on my desk lamp. So… I had to make Gohan fall in love with me to survive, huh? As if those things could happen!…
But… it really, really had to happen for my sake. So I took a notebook from the desk drawer and a pencil, determined to create some kind of plan. I rubbed my eyes as I wrote the title: ‘ Plan to Not Die .’
However, I quickly went blank.
It was obvious that, as a time-traveling warrior, I had never had time for a girlfriend, boyfriend, or anything like that. In fact, I had barely met people during my life. There were no schools; it was too dangerous, so I never had classmates or teenage romances or anything. There were no places to go out or moments to socialize with anyone… In truth, the only person I frequented and mostly knew for sure wouldn’t be dead the next day was Gohan himself… so there was nothing I could base my plan on.
Well… if Gohan was the only one I knew… surely I knew enough about him to know how to make him love me?
I wrote a subtitle: ‘ Things He Likes .’ And then… I went blank again. Gohan and I… when we spent time together, we only trained and did everything possible to survive. He told me stories of a peaceful world, of the movies he knew… to motivate me, of course. But beyond that… I didn’t know much about him. I knew he was strong and brave, yes. But everyone knew that.
Didn’t I know him better than anyone else? And he, me? Did we really know each other well, or…?
I froze. What was I supposed to do?
Then… I saw something shiny out of the corner of my eye on my nightstand. Something green.
On the nightstand, next to the clock, was the Raunuka flower. It was quite small, so it fit as decoration. But now, there was something shiny on the flowerpot. I reached out and grabbed it. It seemed to have something written in Namekian, something that wasn’t visible before.
I put on some sandals and silently left my room with the pot. Then, I went to the lab to look for my mother’s universal translator, which didn’t take me long.
The pot said: ‘ Only with truth will the flower of your breath wither. Balance the scale of emotions ’.
I stared at the inscription for a few moments. What truth was it referring to? Maybe… it had something to do with what I was thinking when I couldn’t write anything about Gohan in my notebook? I wondered if there was something about him I didn’t know yet, something I would have to discover to heal myself, besides making Gohan fall in love with me, of course.
I sighed. That damn flower only made everything more complicated…
A few moments after I translated the inscription, the pot stopped glowing. It was time to return to my bedroom.
Eventually, I managed to fall asleep, but having fallen asleep just before dawn, I wasn’t rested enough for any social situation…