Title: Since Always
Author: Dean
Rating: R (for the curse words)
Disclaimer: Standard blah, blah. DBZ, et al, is the property of Akira Toriyama, etc. I own nothing in here. The plot isn't even original, just my turn with it.
Summary: Feelings change. Weirdness ensues.
Pairings: Goten/Trunks, Gohan/Piccolo, Goku/Vegeta
A/N: This is full of fluff and sap and is an alternate universe fic. Totally based on the American version of the anime and takes place eleven years post Videl and Gohan's marriage; Pan and Bra don't exist in this universe. Goten is 18, Trunks is 19, Gohan is 30. Some OOC to fit the story. For the purposes of this fic, Piccolo is male. And yeah, this features shounen-ai, so if that's not your style, then I suggest picking something else to read for your sake. Also, this is my first DBZ fic, so if you have any good constructive criticism, please let me know. Just don't rail me simply because it features male/male pairings.
Dedication: To Squirrel, who totally gave her support on this.

Goku, his arms full of flowers, walked a few paces in front of Vegeta through the still-dark cemetery. In the very back section of the grounds was where most of their friends had been buried. An awful disease had spread across the lands. No one had ever been sure of what caused the outbreak, but whatever it was, it was natural. The dragonballs couldn't be used to bring back anyone who died from the sickness.

That was eleven years ago. In a span of a few weeks, over a million people had died. Bulma had set to trying to find a cure for it right away and discovered one just before she succumbed herself. Of the people close to them, Krillin and his family, Yamcha, ChiChi, Videl, Bulma, and her parents had all been taken down by the disease. Bulma's antidote had saved everyone else.

And it was all those years ago that the Sons came to live with Vegeta and Trunks at Capsule Corp. At first it had been a little weird, but they soon got used to it. The Sons simply didn't want to live out in the country anymore with their memories. So when Vegeta offered them a chance to move, they took it.

Goku handed a bundle of roses to Vegeta to lay on Bulma's grave while he took the rest to lay on their other friends' graves. They did this every year without their sons' knowledges, wanting to pay their yearly respects alone. Goku placed the final rose bundle on ChiChi's grave and smiled warmly. "Hi, ChiChi," he spoke softly. "Well, today is eleven years. I know you can probably see what's going on from heaven. I hope you're not upset with the way things have changed." A light chuckle escaped his throat. "No, I'm sure you understand."

Vegeta moved beside Goku and tugged on his arm. "The brats will be up soon. We need to get back."

Goku nodded with a smile. "Okay." He looked across the other graves. "Good-bye," he whispered, then followed the saiyajin prince out of the cemetery.

***

Goten raced through the kitchen, quickly eating here and there. Trunks, Gohan, Goku, and Vegeta all sat at the table watching him while still shoveling breakfast into their mouths. Trunks paused momentarily, wondering what the rush was all about. "Hey, Goten," he began. "Where's the fire?"

"Something's on fire?" Goku asked. "Where? I don't see a fire." He sniffed the air. "I don't even smell smoke." Gohan covered his eyes while Vegeta merely shook his head, still not having fully gotten used to Goku's occasional bursts of simple-mindedness. It wasn't that Goku wasn't intelligent; he was just so darn thickheaded sometimes. However, in instances like this, yes. Goku was just plain stupid.

"No fire," Goten answered. "Mr. Piccolo is coming by soon to go sparring, and I overslept."

Trunks's eyes narrowed at that revelation, and Gohan's shot open. He didn't know why they should be surprised at that; Goten sparred with Piccolo every day. The older demi-saiyajin spoke up. "P-Piccolo is coming by?"

"Yup," Goten replied. Gohan began eating his food again, more slowly this time. He hadn't seen Piccolo in ages. It was as if Goten was the only person Piccolo would spar with anymore. Gohan just didn't understand why Piccolo had become so distant.

Trunks wasn't any better. Ever since the Sons had moved in with them, Goten spent more time with Piccolo than he did with his best friend. Or rather, former best friend, Trunks decided. Trunks was relegated to spending his friend-time with Gohan, which he didn't really mind, but still. Both Gohan and Trunks knew there was someone else with whom they'd prefer to hang out.

They felt Piccolo approaching, and within a minute, he was walking through the kitchen back door. Gohan tried to catch the eyes of his mentor, but the namek wouldn't look at him. Trunks glared at the tall, green being, who wouldn't meet his stare either. Goku, oblivious as ever, grinned like an idiot and greeted him. "Hi, Piccolo!"

"Goku," Piccolo nodded once at him and then at Vegeta, who returned the gesture identically. The namek turned his attention back to the youngest demi-saiyajin in the room; Goten had been watching the exchanges between everyone. "Ready to go, kid?" Piccolo asked.

"Sure," he responded. They then quickly exited the building and left for parts unknown.

Gohan stared down at his plate, his usually gigantic appetite suddenly gone. "Are you gonna eat that?" his dad questioned. He shook his head, and Goku pulled the plate over to himself. Pushing away the table, Gohan headed for his room in Capsule Corp. Trunks moved his dish over to Vegeta and Goku, figuring one of them would eat it, and left as well.

"I wonder what's wrong with them," Goku said with his mouth full. The saiyajin prince frowned slightly at his slightly younger counterpart.

"They're upset, Kakarot," he stated. "Any ninny could see that." Goku looked at him with that 'not-a-thought-in-his-head' look and then continued to eat. Vegeta shrugged it off as well and finished eating. "Come on. Let's spar."

"Okay, Vegeta," Goku answered. "Just one more pancake." Vegeta grabbed the last pancake and shoved it into his mouth, swallowing quickly. Goku raised his eyebrows at the elder saiyajin. "I guess we can go now. Dammit, Vegeta. I really wanted that last one."

***

"Hey, Gohan," Trunks said once he'd found him in his room. Gohan barely looked up at him and went on brooding. Trunks sat on the floor in front of the older man and watched him. "I guess you must miss him, huh."

Gohan sighed. "Yeah. Piccolo used to only spar with me. Did you know he hasn't even really spoken to me in the past six years? Six years! I used to be like his best friend, but now it's like he only wants to be friends with my little brother!"

"I know," the lavender-haired youth assured him. "Goten never wants to hang out like we used to either." Trunks scowled deeply. "Why the hell would he want to be friends with Piccolo anyway? He's a big, mean, un-fun, green…asshole."

"No, he's not!" Gohan yelled. "Piccolo can be kind and thoughtful and interesting. He just doesn't show it very often." Gohan's eyes glazed over a little. "Sure, at first, he seems really threatening and scary, but when you get to know him, Piccolo is a great guy. He's strong and brave and smart…" His brow knit somewhat. "Smart enough to get rid of the people he doesn't care for."

Trunks studied Gohan in their silence. He pursed his lips and squinted slightly, as if trying to figure something out. Suddenly, his face broke out in a huge grin. "Oh, man! Wow, Gohan, I didn't know."

"Didn't know what, Trunks?" he queried.

"How long have you been in love with Piccolo?" Trunks countered.

"W-what?! I-I'm not-not in-in-in love with P-Piccolo!"

"You're totally lying, dude," the younger male smiled. "That whole stutter thing? Dead giveaway. So how tell me. How long?"

The dark-haired demi-saiyajin's shoulder's slumped. "Since always," he breathed. "Since I was a kid."

"But what about…?" He left the ending open. For eleven years, none of their friends' names had been mentioned because it had been too painful to hear their names. But Gohan knew who he meant.

"I loved her, but I was never in love with her," Gohan confessed. "It was always still Piccolo."

Trunks smirked. "I thought as much. Well, not about the Piccolo thing, but about the other thing." Gohan nodded grimly. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm kind of in the same predicament."

"You mean…? You're in love with Goten?"

The younger demi-saiyajin shrugged sheepishly. "Since we were kids."

"I…I didn't know you were gay. You've always had so many girlfriends," Gohan said.

"Passing the time. As for being gay, I'm not, really. I've always only loved Goten."

"Oh. Same here, I guess. Except with Piccolo." Awareness lit on Gohan's face. "So that's the real reason why you've been mad about Goten hanging out with Piccolo? Because you're afraid he took him away from you?"

"It's the same reason you're unhappy about it. I suppose we both just thought the other was upset about our friends not wanting to be friends with us anymore, not that they took away the ones with whom we're in love."

"No wonder you dislike Piccolo so much," Gohan pondered aloud. "You think Goten loves him and not you. I never suspected that Goten would have feelings other than friendship for Piccolo though. Do you think he feels that way about him?"

"Well, I don't know," he admitted. "Actually, I don't think Goten thinks about Piccolo in that way. I just really think Goten must've realized that I was in love with him, and so he distanced himself from me."

"That's funny. That's exactly what I'd been thinking regarding Piccolo. That he'd noticed I felt more than simple friendship, so he started to ignore me."

"Hey, Gohan, does anyone else know how you feel about Piccolo?" Trunks asked.

"I don't think so. My dad might've suspected it though because, one time after Goten had left to spar with Piccolo, I saw him talking to Vegeta, and they kept looking at me. Later that day, kinda out of nowhere, he told me that, according to Vegeta, saiyajins were often attracted to males and not females because there weren't a lot of female saiyajins. And he said it wasn't wrong to be attracted to another male. It could just sometimes be painful if the attraction wasn't mutual. I guess he was trying to drop a hint."

"I bet my dad would blast me to smithereens if he knew how I felt about Goten."

"I doubt it. Vegeta has changed a lot over the years. I mean, he and my dad don't even really fight anymore. They're, like, friends, or something." Gohan sighed. "What a mess we're in. What are we going to do, Trunks?"

"Nothing," he replied. "What can we do besides wait and hope?"

"I've got it!" Gohan exclaimed. "Why don't we try talking to them?"

"I'm not going to tell Goten how I feel just to get rejected and possibly get my ass kicked. No way."

"No, no, no. That's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean, Gohan?"

"You talk to Piccolo, and I'll talk to Goten. Maybe we'll be able to feel out what they really think about us. But we can't tell them anything about how we feel about them. We just play it out like we're concerned about us all not being really close friends anymore. That way, even if we can't have them the way we truly want, we can at least have them back as friends again." Gohan smiled in satisfaction at his plan.

"That…might work," Trunks agreed. "Piccolo has never really liked me much though. I don't know if he'll tell me anything."

"Just act really concerned. And if that doesn't work, cry. Piccolo has never been able to stand someone crying."

***

Piccolo meditated under a tree while Goten sat a few feet away skipping stones off the face of the nearby lake. A huge sigh emitting from the young demi-saiyajin brought the namek out of his peaceful state. "What's on your mind, Goten?" he questioned.

"Same thing as always," Goten mumbled.

"Oh."

"Yeah. Oh." The dark-haired youth tossed another stone across the lake. "I'm just afraid, I guess. I want to tell him. I just don't want to get into a fight or something."

"I know."

Goten clambered over to Piccolo and sat next to him. "Don't you ever want to do the same thing?"

"All the time."

"Why don't you?"

Piccolo sighed. "The strain on our friendship would be too great. Things would be worse than they are now."

Goten nodded his understanding. "Yeah. I'm glad you've been here for me. I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't been my friend, Piccolo."

"Same here, kid. Fairly identical problems and all that."

"Exactly. You understand what I'm going through because you're going through it too." He played with the grass in front of him and yanked a blade out. "I wish this wasn't happening to us."

"Me too."

Goten laid back on the grass and gazed up at the clouds. They reminded him of the first day he'd asked Piccolo to spar with him instead of Trunks; the clouds were big and puffy that day too. Piccolo had knocked him hard into the side of a mountain, and he'd begun to cry. It wasn't that the blow had done any damage to him physically; it was that the emotional dams inside him had finally broken down.

//FLASHBACK TO 7 YEARS BEFORE//

"What's the matter with you, Goten?!" admonished the green namek. "You could've easily blocked that kick! Concentrate!" He stopped yelling when he saw the boy's body wracking with sobs. "Stop crying. It couldn't have possibly hurt that badly." Piccolo came closer to him to examine him for broken bones or anything that could explain his current state of distress. When he found none, he placed his hand on Goten's shoulder and lightly shook him. Goten immediately sprung at him, throwing his arms around the older man's neck and bawling loudly into his shoulder. They stayed like that for nearly an hour, with Piccolo frequently patting Goten on the back every time the tears started up again.

"Now tell me what's wrong," Piccolo prompted him. Goten looked up at the much larger man and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

"I-I don't know if I want to tell you. You might not want to be my friend anymore," he spoke softly.

"Goten. Whatever it is, I will understand," the namek reassured him. "Now, tell me."

"It's about Trunks."

"What about Trunks?" pressed Piccolo.

"I'm in love with him." When he remained silent, Goten dragged his eyes up to Piccolo's face, steadying himself for the disgust he was sure that would be there. Instead, he found a small smile and something that appeared like sympathy. "You're not sickened by that?"

Piccolo chuckled quietly. "No."

"That's a relief. I wish everyone could be as understanding as you are."

"Trunks didn't understand when you told him?"

"I can't tell Trunks!" Goten screeched. "He'd beat the shit out of me!" A few minutes passed as they sat in silence while the younger male formulated his next thought into words. "I can't ever tell Trunks how I feel. He'd never accept me as anything more than a friend, but if I told him, I wouldn't even be that. I just couldn't take that kind of rejection."

"And that's why you asked me to spar with you today," Piccolo stated.

Goten nodded. "Part of it. It just hurt too much to hang out with him. You don't know what it's like to be in love with someone who'd never love you back."

"So sure about that, are you," he said more than asked.

Goten blinked away the tears that had been welling up in his eyes up again. He stared straight at Piccolo's seemingly intimidating profile. "What do you mean?"

"Let's just say that I know where you're coming from."

"You know-you've been in love with someone who wouldn't love you back too?"

"No."

The younger man was confused. "Well, then how do you know how I feel if you've never been in my situation?"

"You misunderstand me. You said that I had been. Had been. As in past-tense," Piccolo clarified.

"You mean you are in love with somebody who doesn't love you?" Goten queried. His companion nodded affirmatively. He ventured further. "It's not Dad, is it?" By the incredulous look on Piccolo's face, Goten answered himself. "Okay. Guess not. Who is it then?" Again, the namek did not respond. The two fighters were quiet for a few more minutes when the younger of the two placed one of his hands on top of the elder's. "Pretty Dad-like of me, huh? It could only be one person."

Piccolo let out a deep breath. "That's why I haven't been around much the past couple of years. Just got to be too hard to see him."

"Don't think he hasn't noticed though," Goten pointed out. "Gohan was just saying the other day, 'I wonder what Piccolo's been up to. He hasn't been by in a long time.' That's the rest of the reason why I decided to ask you specifically to spar with me."

"I'm glad you asked. It's been nice to get these feelings off my chest."

Goten smiled brightly at him. "Yeah, it has. Do you think you could be my permanent sparring partner from now on?"

"Sure, kid. Sure."

//END FLASHBACK//

The small smile on Goten's face compelled Piccolo to ask him, "Thinking about something different now?"

"Yeah," he breathed. "I was just thinking about that first time we sparred, and I told you that I was in love with Trunks. And I found out that you were in love with Gohan." He turned to look at the green-skinned giant. "Do you ever think about that day?"

"Sometimes."

"You know, I noticed some things this morning while you were at Capsule Corp."

"Hn."

"Yeah," Goten recounted in his head. "I've been trying to figure it all out. Gohan looked like he was sick, but he seemed fine earlier. And Trunks seemed kinda pissy. He must've been in a bad mood this morning. Dad was, well, Dad. And Vegeta…he's actually the one that's been giving me the most trouble."

"Trouble, how?"

"He had this look in his eye. Like…I don't know. It was like he knew something that we all didn't. That just doesn't sit right with me. What could Vegeta possibly know?"

"Do you think he suspects something?"

"I don't know. Maybe. But it might be that he suspects something between you and me, not our feelings for Trunks and Gohan."

"Hmmm. He didn't seem very strange to me. Maybe you were just imagining things."

"Yeah. Possibly. I mean, our friendship isn't a secret, and we've kept our other feelings just between us only. No one has suspected anything these past few years, so I don't see why anyone would suspect something now."

"Hn."

"Oh, well. I guess I should head back home now. Vegeta will probably be starting dinner soon."

"All right."

"You wanna hang out again tomorrow?"

"Sure."

***

"Come on, Kakarot! Is that the best you've got?" Vegeta sneered. "You make Frieza seem manly!"

"Hey!" Goku shouted back. "You know that's impossible."

"True. All right, then. Almost manly."

"Ugh. I think that's enough for today, Vegeta." Goku reached for a towel and wiped the sweat off his face. "Besides, I'm hungry!"

"Yes, it is almost time I started cooking," Vegeta concurred. "Very well. Until tomorrow."

"Right," Goku smiled. He playfully swatted Vegeta in the face with another towel. The saiyajin prince merely shook his head and grabbed the towel. Goku looked up to a Capsule Corp. window, the window to Gohan's room there. His usually chipper face scrunched up into a small frown.

"What is it?" Vegeta wiped down his chest and shoulders. "Something wrong with one of the brats?"

"Well, I'm not sure. Remember that conversation we had a while back…about male relationships?"

"Of course. A prince never forgets."

Goku raised his eyebrows at that. He was certain he'd heard that phrase before, but maybe not exactly like that. He shook his head of that thought and returned to his original line of thinking. "Well, I think Trunks and Gohan just had that conversation too."

"What? About whom?"

"I think it was about Piccolo and Goten."

"Oh, well, that's nothing. They're just friends." Vegeta began walking back into the building.

"Really, Vegeta?"

"Kakarot, even I did not believe you to be this dense." Vegeta sighed and faced him. "The namek and your younger son are friends to stay away from my son and your elder."

"But I thought they were all friends."

"Sometimes, feelings change."

"There's no way I could believe that Piccolo and Goten wouldn't want to be friends with Gohan and Trunks anymore and vice versa."

Vegeta cuffed Goku upside his head. "It's not that, you idiot. Their feelings have changed. They all want their relationships to change to coincide with their feelings for each other."

"I don't think I follow."

"Do you ever?"

Goku once again had that not-a-thought-in-his-head look on his face. Vegeta often wondered if occasionally Goku's mind really was a vast space-like vacuum. Sure seemed like it sometimes. The younger saiyajin sounded, "Huh?"

Vegeta ran a hand down his own face. "Kakarot. Let me spell this out for you as bluntly as possible so you don't hurt yourself. They're all in love with each other but are too scared of rejection to do anything about it."

Just then, a light went on behind Goku's eyes. "Oh! Now I get it! Why didn't you just say that in the first place?" Vegeta looked blankly at him and then simply turned and walked into the building. Goku followed him inside to the kitchen. "Say Vegeta, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."

"What?"

He came up behind the saiyajin prince and slid his arms around his waist. He placed a small kiss on the shorter saiyajin's bare shoulder. Vegeta turned around in his arms and stared up into Goku's eyes. "When can we tell everyone about our relationship?"

"Soon," Vegeta whispered, running his fingertips across Goku's collarbone. "Very soon."

Goku grinned at him. "Finally! I've been waiting to tell everyone from the beginning."

"It'll be nice to get it out in the open."

"Well, after nine years of being together in secret, it's about damn time." Goku bent his head down towards Vegeta's, brushing his lips ever so slightly against his. Vegeta leaned into the kiss, deepening it. They were fully unaware of the two demi-saiyajins who just entered the kitchen. And no one saw the namek and the youngest demi-saiyajin enter through the same door Goku and Vegeta had come through just moments before.

Goten, Gohan, and Trunks exclaimed identically, "DAD?!?!?!"

***

"Oh, fuck." Vegeta sighed heavily.

The six males looked back and forth between each other. A corner of Piccolo's mouth twitched slightly, threatening to move into his patented smirk. Vegeta and Goku stayed right where they were, though no longer kissing. Goten had adopted his father's vacant look of confusion. And the other two demi-saiyajins just stood there, mouths agape and eyes wide open.

"What the hell are you all staring at?" Vegeta finally grunted.

"You-you-you-you," Gohan sputtered. He exasperatedly groaned with frustration.

"When the fuck did this happen?" Trunks was able to ask.

"About nine years ago, give or take a couple of months," smiled Goku.

"Nine years?!" Goten cried out. "You've been together for nine years?! Holy shit!"

"Unbelievable," Trunks whispered. "This can't be real."

"Oh, it's very real, boy," assured his father.

"Yeah, we were going to tell you all about us, but…well…this happened instead," Goku explained. "So…surprise!"

"Surprise? Kakarot. Surprise?"

"Well, I couldn't think of anything else to say, Vegeta."

"Now, that I believe," Vegeta smirked.

"Man…What the fuck?" Trunks gaped, still not believing.

"You guys aren't mad, are you?" questioned Goku. "We were really hoping you wouldn't be too upset."

"We're not mad, Dad," Goten stated. "We're just a little…shocked, is all."

"Hell, 'shocked' doesn't even begin to scratch the surface," Trunks admitted. "When were you originally planning on clueing us in to your secret? Come on! This is like some gigantic nuclear bomb you've just dropped. I mean…oh, man. This is just wild! I-just-I never would've…you know? Just…this is so fucked up."

"Seriously," the saiyajin prince began, "this is not as 'fucked up' as you think. It is quite normal for saiyajin males to mate."

"Still," his son said, "you have to admit it's a little unusual. I mean, you and Goku have always hated each other, at least from what I've been told. And now all of a sudden, you're, like, together? How can that be?"

"It's pretty simple," sounded Goku. "We were sparring one day, and it just came out. We just…knew. You know? You know how, sometimes, you just know some things? Well, Vegeta and I both came to the same realization that we had feelings for each other and wanted to act on them. We just knew we were supposed to be together."

"That's your answer? You gotta be fucking kidding me." Trunks folded his arms across his chest, much like the customary stance both his father and Piccolo often held. "Are you-just…how exactly does this work? Are you, like…?"

"Like what, Trunks?" pressed Goku.

"You know…lovers? Like gay-type lovers? Or just…like, kissing friends?"

"We are lovers," Vegeta informed.

"What do you see in each other?" He watched as the two full saiyajins smiled at each other, and he held up a hand. "Wait. On second thought, I really don't want to know."

"Have you both always been like this?" Goku's younger son questioned. "I mean, have you always preferred-what about…?"

Vegeta and Goku glanced sideways at other, an unspoken exchange between them. "Yes," the saiyajin prince finalized, "and no. We both loved your mothers very much. But there was always an attraction between Kakarot and me. It was really only a matter of time before we realized it. Of course, it didn't occur under the best of circumstances, but it was meant to be like this. We were meant to be together."

"Whoa," Goten interjected. "This is just like being told that Santa Claus doesn't exist."

"Santa Claus doesn't exist?!" Goku burst out. He looked around at everyone. "Why didn't anyone tell me Santa Claus isn't real?"

"Kakarot! The jolly fat man in the red suit isn't important right now!" Vegeta blasted.

"Aw, man. There's no Santa Claus. That's so not cool," the younger saiyajin muttered.

"Vegeta's right, Dad," Goten said. "And sorry about the Santa Claus thing."

"Are you happy?" Trunks suddenly asked.

"Yes," his father answered him. "Very much so."

"Congratulations," came the first words from Piccolo's mouth. The demi-saiyajins stared at him, eyes bulging. Goku and Vegeta smiled.

"Thanks, Piccolo," Goku returned.

Goten whirled on the namek standing next to him. "What the fuck? Did you know? Did you know and just not fucking tell me or something?"

"No," he replied. "I didn't know. But I suspected it. They just confirmed my suspicions."

"Really?" the younger saiyajin asked. "You suspected us? But I thought we were being careful." Piccolo's smirk was his only response. "Wow. You sure are smart, Piccolo! Can't get anything past you."

"So," Gohan began, finally finding his voice, "you guys are…in love?"

"That's right, son." Vegeta nodded in agreement with his lover. "We hope you guys will learn to accept this. It's not going to change."

"Of-of course," the lavender-haired demi-saiyajin answered. "Of course we accept you. You're our dads. How could we not?"

"Yeah," added Gohan. "It's just…wow." Gohan's eyes rolled back in his head, and he dropped to the kitchen floor, fainted dead away. Goten ran to his brother's side, shouting his name as he reached him.

"You owe me dinner out now, Kakarot. I knew he'd faint," Vegeta pointed out. "Goten, take your brother to his room. Everyone else, get out. I've decided to order in tonight."

Goku helped Goten carry Gohan out of the room. Piccolo turned to leave when Trunks called out to him. "Piccolo. I want to talk to you for a couple of minutes." Piccolo grunted, and Trunks took that as an agreement, following the much larger man out through the kitchen back door.

Vegeta smiled to himself while watching them. Proceeding to pick up the phone, he pressed the first speed dial button. "Yes, I want to order fifty large super-deluxe pizzas…"

***

Piccolo stood a few feet away from Trunks in his usual stance: feet shoulder-width apart, arms folded across his chest. Trunks was somewhat leery of the older man and kept out of reaching distance, in case the namek decided he didn't like what he had to say. "So," Piccolo said. "You said you want to talk. Now, talk."

The demi-saiyajin cleared his throat soundly, hoping to buy himself a little time to collect his thoughts and not screw this up. "Well," he started, "I wanted to talk to you about Gohan."

This got Piccolo's attention. "Hn? What about Gohan? Is something wrong with him?"

"Sort of," Trunks alluded. He tried his best to study Piccolo's reactions without scrutinizing him too much, lest he get caught. So far, he could hear the interest in Piccolo's voice, but his outward appearance hadn't changed at all. The namek was damn good at hiding his emotions. Trunks would have been envious of this if he didn't really need for him to be showing more of a response just then. "You see, I'm worried about him."

"Well, what's wrong?"

"He misses you."

"I've been around."

"Yeah, but only to spar with Goten." Trunks sighed. This was going to be tougher than he thought. Piccolo wasn't giving anything away. "You guys used to be, like, best friends. Now, you don't even say 'hello'. He really wants to spend time with you again, but you're always sparring with Goten instead."

Had he been that selfish? Piccolo couldn't help but wonder if Gohan really missed him as Trunks said. And yes, he had basically ignored him for years now. All because he didn't want to deal with his own feelings. "Has he said something?" Piccolo queried.

"Not exactly," the younger man lied, "but I can just tell. He misses your friendship."

"He's always had my friendship," Piccolo stated.

"Well, maybe you could take him out to spar some day instead of Goten," Trunks suggested. "You know, to let him know that you're still friends? I'm sure that's what he wants." He watched the older man's countenance darken slightly and his jaw tightened.

Friends. They'd always be friends. 'Unless Gohan ever found out just how friendly you wanted to be,' the namek thought to himself. "And this is what you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Yeah." Trunks play-kicked at a small rock on the lawn. "I've been worried. He'll get really quiet when you come to spar with Goten. I put two and two together."

"Hn."

"Will you at least consider it?" It was now or never. He had to see something. He didn't care if he got caught. He blatantly stared at the namek. He wanted a sign, needed a sign. Anything that would tell him how Piccolo felt.

"Yeah," came the reply.

That was it. Trunks saw it. A flash in the older man's eyes. The exact same look he'd seen on Gohan's face during their talk earlier that day-the look of a heavy heart. It was gone as quickly as it had come, but Trunks had seen it. It was all the evidence he could've wanted. "Piccolo, I know we've never gotten along much, but…well, thank you. Thank you for listening to me…and thank you for agreeing to think about it." Trunks turned and went back into the building.

***

"Come on, Gohan. Wake up," Goten said, lightly slapping his brother on the cheek. The older demi-saiyajin's eyes fluttered open and slowly focused in on his brother.

"Oh, Goten," he breathed. "I had the weirdest dream. I dreamt that Dad told us that he was in love with Vegeta. I mean, heh! Imagine that. Dad and Vegeta in a relationship. Crazy, huh?" He saw a questioning look on his younger brother's face. "What?"

"Uh, Gohan, that did happen. Just a few minutes ago. In the kitchen. Remember?" he reminded. "They told us they'd been together for…nine years, which I still can't believe, and then you fainted. Remember?"

"Oh, man. Yeah. Now I do." Suddenly, Gohan's mind rippled back to that conversation he'd had with his dad not too long ago. When he'd been talking about saiyajin males mating with other males, he didn't mean Gohan; he had no clue about Gohan's feelings for Piccolo. He'd been trying to prepare his elder son for the revelation of his and Vegeta's relationship. Everything was making sense now. His dad wasn't usually known for subtlety, but boy, could he pull it off. Maybe, Gohan reasoned, maybe this was a sign. Piccolo had actually congratulated his dad and Vegeta. Maybe he would accept him for his mating preferences. Or not. "Where's Trunks?" he finally asked.

"He's outside," Goten informed him. "I heard him say he wanted to talk to Piccolo, but not what about." He was still curious on that one. What could Trunks possibly want to talk to Piccolo about? They weren't known for being close at all. This day was just getting weirder and weirder.

"Oh," his brother sounded. Gohan recalled his conversation with Trunks earlier that day. 'You talk to Piccolo, and I'll talk to Goten…' Trunks must've just seen the opportunity and taken it. 'I'd better do the same,' he thought.

"Are you okay? Do you want me to go get him?" offered Goten.

"No, no. I'm fine now," he said. "I just wondered where he was." He examined his brother for a moment. Goten didn't seem stressed much, except where he was concerned. Maybe he could ease into the topic just a bit. "Are you okay?"

"I'm cool. I just wish I'd known all these years instead of finding out how I-we-did. They seem so happy. I must've been blind. All the signs were there. No wonder Piccolo said he'd suspected it. He's so perceptive like that." Goten smiled at his brother. "Are you gonna be okay with it, Gohan?"

"I'm fine with it. It makes a lot of sense now that I think about it. And you're right. All the pieces were there. Just didn't see them." Gohan decided to throw easing into the topic out the window and just plunged in. "Goten, I'm glad Trunks isn't around right now because there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."

"What is it, Gohan?"

"Do you not want to be friends with Trunks anymore?"

Goten shrunk back from his brother and blinked a couple of times. "What gave you that idea?"

"Well, it's just that you've been spending so much time with Piccolo, and I never see you and him hang out anymore. I was beginning to wonder if you just didn't want to be his friend."

"No!" shouted Goten. "Of course I want to be his friend! I want to be his friend more than anything."

Well, that was unexpected, Gohan decided. Goten's outburst was more telling than any kind of body language ever could be. Gohan was certain that if Trunks let Goten know how he felt, he'd at least still retain his friendship. And that was the important thing. Not making things any worse than they'd already gotten. "Then you should tell him," Gohan suggested. "Tell him you want to be his friend more than anything. Hang out with him tomorrow instead of Piccolo."

Goten smiled lightly and nodded. "Will you spar with Piccolo tomorrow for me? I don't want him to show up here without someone to spar with. Will you ask him to spar with you instead?"

Gohan gulped. The silence between him and Piccolo had been much lengthier than the distance between his brother and Trunks. But maybe… "Sure, Goten. It's been so long since I sparred with anyone. I'd like to give it another shot."

"Good," Goten grinned. Suddenly, he sniffed loudly. "Cool! Vegeta ordered pizza! Come on, Gohan. We'd better get down there before Dad eats it all!"

***

Just after the sun rose, Goten dressed and made his way to Trunks' room. His stomach was in knots. When was the last time he'd done this? Goten couldn't remember. Had he really sequestered himself away with Piccolo for that long? He swallowed hard and knocked on the door. It opened, and Trunks' bright blue eyes peered out at him.

"Goten?" he asked, opening the door further. "What's up?"

"Um, well, I," Goten stumbled. "I was wondering if maybe you'd like to hang out today. We could go to the lake. Go fishing or whatever…"

The first thought that entered the lavender-haired demi-saiyajin's mind was that Gohan must've spoken to him last night, just as he'd spoken to Piccolo. "Aren't you sparring with Piccolo again today?"

"Well, I was supposed to, but Gohan said he'd spar with Piccolo instead so we could hang out together today. You know…if you want to…"

Trunks grinned brightly. "Yeah! I'd really like that, Goten. Can we go now?"

"Sure!" Trunks shut the door behind him, and the two demi-saiyajins headed off for the lake.

***

Piccolo landed just outside Capsule Corp. and entered as he normally did, through the back door of the kitchen. As usual, breakfast was nearly finished being eaten, but this time, only Goku and Vegeta were at the table. Goku gave his patented grin and greeted the tall namek. "Good morning, Piccolo!"

"Goku. Vegeta." He couldn't sense Goten's ki anywhere around there. "Where's Goten?" he asked.

"He left with Trunks earlier this morning," Vegeta answered.

"Oh," was all Piccolo could say. He noticed Vegeta had a small smirk on his face, and he was about to ask him about it when Gohan entered the kitchen. Gohan was just finishing tying a deep red sash around his waist. Piccolo noticed that he was wearing a dark royal indigo training gi almost identical to his own.

The younger man smiled sheepishly. "Um, Goten asked me if I would spar with you today while he hung out with Trunks. If," Gohan locked onto the gaze of his mentor, "if that's all right with you, Piccolo."

"All right."

Goku and Vegeta watched the other two fighters exit through the back door, and Goku sighed. "Does this mean things are back to normal?" he asked.

Vegeta allowed his smirk to fully slide across his face. "I don't know if they'll ever be the way they used to be, but it may be better. It's about damn time."

***

The silence stretched between Goten and Trunks as they laid beneath a tree by the lake. They'd sparred some beforehand and then decided to just lay back and enjoy the warm afternoon sun. Trunks glanced over at his companion's profile. This was how things used to be. Just the two of them. Doing absolutely nothing. Was that what he did with Piccolo? Had Piccolo taken Trunks' role in Goten's life as his best friend? Curiosity got the better of the demi-saiyajin. "Is this what you do with Piccolo every day?" Trunks asked, breaking the silence.

"Kind of," Goten replied. "He and I spar more than we did. Then he meditates for a while. And we'll talk sometimes. Just depends on the mood we're in." The younger demi-saiyajin looked back over at his friend. He could never get over how blue Trunks' eyes were. They so much resembled his father's but were the most brilliant blue, unlike his father's obsidian eyes.

Neither of them were conscious of how long they'd been staring into each other's eyes, but Goten was quickly brought back into awareness when Trunks absently moved his hand and laced his fingers with his. "Trunks?" Goten croaked.

A small frown flitted across Trunks' handsome features, and he pulled his hand away quickly. "Sorry," he apologized. "I must've not been paying attention."

"It's okay," Goten offered. He took Trunks' hand back in his, imitating the same gesture he'd made, and squeezed softly. Should he tell him now? Maybe just offer out the olive branch of friendship…wait. Or was that the olive branch of peace? Well, either way, he had to say something. "We're friends, aren't we, Trunks?"

Trunks hoped the flip-flops his heart was doing weren't apparent to Goten. He'd felt so stupid for holding his hand, but then Goten had grabbed it back. Could he tell him? Things were so fragile as it was. Could Trunks afford to take this risk? "Of course, Goten. We'll always be friends."

"Always? No matter what?"

What was he getting at with this? "No matter what," he repeated.

Goten sat up and got on his knees to face the slightly older male. Trunks instantly became all too apprehensive. Fear pitted deep in his stomach, threatening to tear out of him at any moment. He mimicked the same position that Goten had moved into. "I have something I want to ask you," Goten began.

"Yes?" Trunks prompted. Now, he was really nervous.

"You know how our dads are…together now?" the dark-haired demi-saiyajin asked. Trunks gave a small nod, his eyebrows drawing slightly downward. "How do you feel about that? About them being in love?"

How did he feel about that… Trunks knew he had no real problem with it. Sure, it had shocked the hell out of him at first, but then he realized it was just like the way he'd been in love with his own best friend for ages. He knew it was right. "I think it's a good thing. It's the right thing for them. Your dad was right when he said he and my dad knew they were supposed to be together. They were. No matter what anyone else thinks, I think it works."

Goten's lips curved into a small smile. If he is fine with their dads being gay, then maybe…maybe he'll accept him too. It was time to tell him. "Me too. In fact, I have something I want to tell you now."

An alarm sounded in Trunks' head. 'Run!' it screamed. 'Run before he tells you he knows how you feel, but he doesn't feel the same way! Run!' "What is it?" he swallowed hard.

"I'm…I'm that way too," Goten let out.

Trunks' heart leapt in his chest. This could mean… Did he have a chance? "You mean you're… You're gay?"

Goten nodded, biting his lower lip and steeling himself for whatever happened next.

"Is there someone? Someone you're in love with?" Trunks tread delicately.

The younger male's eyes rimmed with tears as he gazed into the object of his affection's questioning eyes. Could he go through with this? Should he? He didn't have to answer Trunks' inquiry. The lavender-haired demi-saiyajin suddenly closed the space between them. He pressed his lips to the younger male's in a soft, whisper of a kiss.

Trunks pulled back a couple of inches and stared straight into Goten's eyes. "I'll try to understand if it's not me," he said, "but I'm in love with you."

"Since when?" Goten asked almost too quietly for Trunks to hear.

"Since always."

Goten cupped Trunks' face in his hands, gazing deeply into his love's blue eyes. "I love you, Trunks," he confessed. "It's always been you. Always, you."

A solitary tear slid down Trunks' face. "I was so scared you'd hate me. I never even allowed myself to dream… Goten, you're everything to me."

The two demi-saiyajins met again in a kiss, this one much more passionate than the first hint of a kiss. When they finally pulled away from each other, resolution shone in their eyes. They both knew they wanted the same thing. "I guess we have a little announcement of our own to make, huh, Trunks?" Goten smiled.

"Absolutely," Trunks agreed, touching his lips to Goten's once more before taking off into the air, fingers entwined with each other's.

***

Gohan sat facing Piccolo, watching him meditate. He was so out of shape! He knew Piccolo had taken it easy on him, and still, he'd had a hard time keeping up. Had it really been that long since he trained at all? The demi-saiyajin couldn't recall the last time he'd had such an intense work out.

Piccolo was completely aware that Gohan was staring at him, though his own eyes were closed. The closeness between them was almost too much to bear. It only took moments like these to remind him of why he'd stayed away from his former student. Gohan was jolted when Piccolo's eyelids slid open and he turned to look at him. "Is something on your mind, Gohan?" the older man asked.

Gohan choked a little. Surely Piccolo hadn't been sensing his thoughts. Gohan searched his mind for something else he could've been thinking about, anything but how attractive his counterpart was. "Um, well, I guess I was thinking about my dad and Vegeta," he tried. When Piccolo didn't respond, he continued. "It's just the last thing in the world I'd ever have expected. Just didn't see it coming."

"Do you have a problem with it?" queried his friend. He knew that if Gohan couldn't accept his own father's choices, then he'd never be able to accept Piccolo's, especially if they involved him.

"No, no," replied Gohan. "I was just a little surprised."

"You fainted," Piccolo reminded him.

"Okay, so I was completely floored," he admitted. "I mean, Dad and Vegeta! Who would've ever guessed?"

"I did."

"How? You haven't exactly been around a lot." As soon as the words came out of Gohan's mouth, he wanted to blast himself. He wasn't mad at Piccolo, but it sounded like it. He was transferring his anger at himself, at his own inability to confess his feelings, onto the one being in all the world that filled his heart with every emotion imaginable. When he looked back into the namek's eyes, he could see that Piccolo had taken it exactly as it had sounded: accusatory.

"I've been around. You just haven't noticed," he coldly returned.

Gohan felt like crying. This was going so wrongly. He knew Piccolo openly accepted his father's relationship, so he wouldn't turn his back on him, but would he be able to understand that the feelings Gohan had were only for him? He had planned to tell Piccolo that day, but it just wasn't going to happen. He'd have to wait for another day. A day when he wasn't being a complete mental case.

Piccolo unwittingly shared the same thoughts as his companion. Pressing the idea of acknowledging aloud his love to Gohan into the furthest part of his mind, he stood suddenly, a sure sign that the day was over. "We should be getting back to Capsule Corp," he stated firmly, taking off into the sky.

"Okay." Gohan followed him closely. The day had not been a total loss; he had been able to spend the entire day with his paramour. But he hadn't been able to tell him. He'd chickened out. He sighed. There would just have to be a better day, a better time. Some other time when things weren't quite so fragile. Gohan's eyes filled with tears. How could he have allowed his friendship with Piccolo-the greatest friendship of his life-to deteriorate so greatly?

The green namek blamed himself for the break down of their friendship. He'd been the one to start avoiding Gohan because he couldn't control himself. He knew he was better than that, but try as he might, he could not defeat his affection for the younger man. Their destination loomed in front of them, signaling the end of the day with a certain sense of finality.

***

"Oh, good," Goku greeted. "You're finally here!"

Gohan and Piccolo entered through the kitchen, per usual, and found Goku, Vegeta, Goten, and Trunks all sitting at the table, without food. Gohan chuckled nervously. "Was I supposed to cook or something tonight? I mean, Vegeta usually cooks."

"Stop talking," Vegeta ordered. "Dinner has been put on hold for a while tonight."

"What? Why?" Gohan scanned the faces of his family and surrogate family. "Why were you guys waiting for us, then?"

"Now Goten and Trunks can tell us the big secret they've been holding out on us for the past half-hour," Goku grinned.

"Should I be sitting down for this?" the eldest demi-saiyajin questioned.

"If you want," Trunks said. "We have an announcement to make."

Piccolo caught Goten's eyes, which were sparkling with exuberance. A genuine smile spread across the older man's features. If Trunks and Goten had an announcement, the namek knew only one thing could've made Goten's eyes shine the way they did. His heart filled with the conflicting emotions or happiness and sadness; happiness for his friend who'd finally been able to express his feelings for the lavender-haired demi-saiyajin and sadness that he could not do the same regarding Gohan.

Trunks cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Well, I guess there's no better way to just get this out there than to just say it." He reached for Goten's hand on the table. "Goten and I are in love." When no one reacted, Trunks frowned and loked hard at everyone in the room. "Well? Don't you have anything to say?"

"Oh, well, we already knew that," Goku said. "You're just officially together now, right?"

"That's right, Dad," grinned his younger son. "Trunks and I are together."

"Good of you to finally admit it," Vegeta offered. "Now, what does everyone want for dinner?"

Trunks was dumbstruck. "What-is that all? I mean, you're not stunned or anything?"

The saiyajin prince scoffed. "Are you kidding? I knew you two were in love before Kakarot and I got together."

"Really, Vegeta?" Goku asked. Vegeta merely blinked at him. "Huh. So how long have you two felt this way about each other?"

"Since we were kids," Goten disclosed.

Piccolo moved over to the table and shook the youngest demi-saiyajin's hand, then Goten's love's hand. "I know you'll be very happy."

"Thank you, Piccolo," said Trunks. His eyes followed the tall namek out the kitchen door. Quickly looking at Gohan, he jerked his head towards the door. Gohan gave him a confused frown, and Trunks' eyes widened incredulously. Still, the oldest demi-saiyajin wasn't catching on. "Go, dumbass! Go!"

Gohan looked once at the door and then back at Trunks before speeding through the door. Vegeta cleared his throat. "I guess I'll be ordering in again tonight. Chinese? No, Italian…because this a special occasion."

***

Gohan took to the air, seeking out Piccolo's ki. He couldn't have gotten very far; he had left barely a minute before Gohan came after him. Wait. There he was, just ahead of him. "Piccolo!" he called out. "Piccolo, stop!"

Piccolo stopped in midair. Why was Gohan chasing him down? "What do you want, Gohan?"

"I-I need to talk to you for a minute."

"We don't have anything to discuss."

The tears came to the younger man's eyes again. "Please? Down there." He pointed to a clearing next to a creek. "Piccolo?"

"Fine," he acquiesced, "but only for a minute."

The two flew down to the creek and seated themselves close to the bank. Piccolo stared pointedly at his younger counterpart. "Well? You got me here. Now what was it that was so important you had to follow me?"

He had wanted to kiss him for so long, and this was his chance. The perfect opportunity. He had him right where he wanted him. "This." Gohan moved forward and pressed his lips hard against Piccolo's.

Piccolo was so overwhelmed, his only reaction was to push Gohan away. "What are you doing, Gohan?"

The tears that had been threatening to fall all day made their way down Gohan's face. "I-oh, Piccolo. I love you so much," he whimpered. The tears slid slowly down his cheeks. "Please don't let this ruin our friendship any further. I just-I just had to tell you. With everyone else being so brave and coming forward, I couldn't let it slide any longer. Please tell me this won't change anything."

"It changes everything."

Gohan cried silently into his hands. Piccolo sat helplessly in front of him. He was handling this so poorly. All he'd ever wanted to hear was that Gohan felt the same way about him as he did. And how did he react? By pushing him away. How does someone take something like that back?

"Gohan…"

"Piccolo, please," Gohan pleaded. "I can't lose your friendship. I've let it get so bad that you won't even really talk to me anymore. You knew, didn't you? That's why you stayed away. You knew I was in love with you, and so you stayed away." Gohan stared up at the namek's unchanging face. "All I wanted in my life was to be like you. So I tried. But I just got caught up in what it meant to be you. You were so cold, but I wanted to change that. I thought maybe…maybe I could help you. But you're still cold."

Piccolo sighed. "I will always be cold," he stated quietly.

"No, you care. You do care," Gohan insisted. "I've seen you change over the years. I've seen you not be so cold. Why did you get like this again?"

"How long?" Piccolo asked.

"What? How long, what?" puzzled Gohan.

"How long have you felt this way?"

He thought back to what he'd told Trunks just the day before. 'Since always. Since I was a kid…' The truth is always best, Gohan decided. "Since always," he repeated for the second time in as many days. "Since I was little, and you first trained me. I didn't know what it was back then, but I've known for a long time now. It has always, always been you for me."

"Then why did you marry her?!" Piccolo shouted, the anger erupting forth after so many years of repression. He didn't realize how so much pain had been building up over the years, and it had all been released in one small question. However, this outburst could prove problematic. He had breached the forbidden topic. No one ever discussed Gohan and Videl's marriage, although more than one person thought Gohan didn't really want the marriage.

"I loved her," Gohan said. "But I was never in love with her. She was the one I thought would make everyone happy. I always figured I would fall in love with her eventually, but she just wasn't the one for me, really. I never even dreamed I could have the one person I truly wanted. And, as it turns out, I can't. No one would've understood if I had said, 'Hey, everybody, I don't want to marry her while I'm in love with Piccolo.' Yeah. How well would that have gone over? My mother would've keeled over right then and there, long before that disease ever killed her."

"They would've understood," Piccolo attempted to assure the younger man.

"You don't even understand."

"Yes. I do." Piccolo met the steady gaze of the demi-saiyajin. He had to come clean. Had to make things right. "Gohan, I have loved you for years, even when it wasn't right for me to love you in the way that I do." He held a hand up as the younger man's eyes suddenly brightened. "But…we can't. I love you, but we can't be together."

Gohan's body shook with each sharp intake of air he took. "Why the hell not?!"

"Because we're different. We come from completely opposite worlds." He paused, trying to collect the one thought with which he'd been plagued for ages. "And because I am meant to be alone. We should just go our separate ways." The taller man stood up from the spot and turned away. "Good-bye."

"No!" screamed Gohan. He grabbed Piccolo's arms and swung him around to face him. "No. Look in my eyes. Does it look like I want to say good-bye, Piccolo?" When the namek said nothing, he went on. "Piccolo, I love-no, look at me. Look me in the eyes when I'm telling you this. I. Love. You. You, Piccolo. And I will never let you go. Do you understand me? Never. You are not meant to be alone, do you hear me? You're meant to be with me. Just like Dad and Vegeta. Just like Goten and Trunks. You are meant to be with me."

Piccolo reached one of his large, green hands up to Gohan's face. He stroked his cheek with his thumb. "We can't," he spoke softly.

"We can," Gohan returned. "Are you in love with me?"

"Yes," Piccolo whispered.

"And there's no one else?"

"There never could be."

"Then you'll never be alone again." He wrapped his arms around Piccolo's broad shoulders. "We will always be together." He leaned up and placed his lips on Piccolo's again, only instead of being pushed away as before, the kiss was warmly and passionately returned. It was the kiss of truly pure love.

***

"They're back," Goku announced to the others sitting at the kitchen table.

"Huh? Who?" Trunks asked. "What are you talking about, Goku?"

"Piccolo and Gohan, boy," Vegeta answered. His ears perked to a knock at the front door. "Good timing too. Food's here." He got up from the table and disappeared from the room.

Gohan and Piccolo came through the back door of the kitchen holding each other's hand. The three remaining fighters at the table grinned broadly. "You told him!" Goten and Trunks exclaimed at the same time. They quickly looked back at each other. "You knew?" they asked, again in unison.

"Okay, cut that out," Piccolo interrupted. "That's just creepy."

"Goten, you knew that…" Gohan trailed off. "So that's why you and Piccolo hung out! You thought that we… Huh."

"It's funny how everything makes sense after the fact, right?" Goku grinned.

"Yeah, really." Gohan looked up at his love. "But just as long as everything happens the way it was meant to happen." Piccolo bent down and kissed him on the forehead. Gohan smiled and cuddled into his side.

Vegeta walked into the kitchen carrying several large delivery bags. "Well, don't just stand there looking like fools just because you've finally admitted what we've all known for years. There are enough bags out front for each one of you to grab a few each. Do I look like the butler? Go help bring dinner in!"

The others carried in the remaining thirty bags. "Pino's, Vegeta? That's the best Italian restaurant in the area!" Goku grinned. "And my favorite!"

"Well, I knew we'd be celebrating tonight. It is a special occasion after all," he said, removing the contents of the bags. "Today's the day everyone got their heads out of the sand and stopped being complete and total idiots." The younger fighters all looked at him strangely. "Well, it's true. It's about time you all realized that some things are just meant to be…and that I know everything."

"Everything?" Piccolo questioned.

"Yes. I've known about all of you before you did."

"Since when?" Trunks scoffed.

Vegeta sat down at the table with his love, their sons and their loves. "Since always."

THE END