Exposure, part 5
By: Chocolate-chan

I only know it was still dark when my mother came to me, and I woke to feel her gently rubbing my shoulders. I groaned slightly, feeling tension pains as her fingers dug in. "You're good at that, Kaa-san."
"I've had practice," she replied, and I sighed as she moved over to sit near me. "What's the matter, Trunks?"
"What makes you say something's the matter?"
"Well, I thought I sent Goten to come rescue you out of here earlier, but here you are, and I saw Goten stomping up the stairs earlier like he was pretty upset." I felt a pang. "What happened?"
"Nothing, ma. It just..." I took a long breath and let it out slowly. "I guess it was building."
"You had a fight?" Her face was sympathetic.
"Yeah," I acknowledged, and leaned back crossing my arms and legs in a long stretch. It was really cold in this room. "I don't know. It was stupid." Maybe it wasn't stupid to Goten, I thought briefly. Was that proof of his argument?
"Do you wanna talk about it?" My mother asked from the semi-darkness. I glanced over at her. In the electric glow of the computer screen, she was starting to look old. My mother, old. Never. It glowed brightly off of her short blue hair and her eyes. But her expression was still sympathetic.
"There's not much to talk about," I said with a grunt, turning away. "It went from being about his father to being about me to being about our.." I bit my lip. "...Relationship."
"I see."
"Kaa-san..." I didn't want to ask this, but somehow I had to know. "Am I like my father?"
She appeared surprised. "Of course you are," she replied. "Saiyan genes are strong. How do you mean?"
"Like... in a bad way."
"Are you...?"
"Am I arrogant like he always was? Do I really act like I'm better than everybody?"
"Is that what Goten said to you?" She still sounded quite disbelieving.
"Well..." and after a moment I made a gesture to indicate that she should operate on this assumption.
"Listen, Trunks..." she began, pressing the fingers of one hand together delicately as she thought. "You're highly intelligent, and we all know that. Sometimes even I'm jealous of you," she admitted with a sheepish grin.
I was shocked. "But, Kaa-san.. I got it from you."
"I know. But you have pretty much everything going for you, even if you don't realize it. You have yourself totally together. But you don't really think about the difference between yourself and other people. It's not because you're unfeeling or arrogant, it's because you just..." she shrugged. "You try to think of everyone as equals to you. When everyone's not exactly equal in one thing or another. I really don't think Goten would be upset with you over that. Was this far into the conversation?"
I shrugged. I guess that it was directly related to Goku as a conversationaly topic, but I really didn't want to talk about that. I felt, somehow, that I had to, though. "Am I rude to Goku-san?"
"You're rude to everybody, darling. Ever since you were young you never made the room for the proper respect unless you had to. Teaching you to say '-san' was probably the most successful negotiation of my life." My mother rose to her feet. "I'm hereby banishing you from my lab until you've gotten eight hours sleep. go," she said, pointing at the door.
"But Kaa-san, I-"
"But nothing, go." She smiled and watched as I backed up the work. "And no making it available to the computer in you room."
I frowned. "But Kaa-san, I'm too frustrated to sleep."
"Obviously not. Besides, I want you to take this to the convention next week. So it needs to be right! Will you do it?"
Taking it to the convention meant that I could be the one to personally present our findings to the rest of the business and technological corporate communities, and take credit for it. It was quite a score, for someone my age, especially if it turned out well. "Alright, Kaa-san. I'll do it. But first I'll get some sleep."
"I don't trust you. Leave the glasses." I laughed and laid them down and bid her goodnight. I climbed the stairs slowly, paused, and pushed open the door to my room. I wasn't surprised to find that Goten had stayed in his own room this night, but it was still painful. I changed clothes and climbed into my bed, wondering if maybe there was some way I could have avoided our conflict earlier. Eventually my perpetual headache declared itself more important than that and forced me to sleep.

I rubbed my eyes, still sleepy from my mopping up work the night before on my project. I was eminently pleased with the results, which showed that switching to another common composite alloy would up data transfer rate by 20 percent and accurracy by another 10 percent. As had I recalled, and proven in my research, the material had been considered a long time ago, but had been difficult to refine and thus obtain then, and no one considered it anymore.
I had packed away all of my little toys with which I would demonstrate and was packing my overnight bag for the trip. Capsule Corp. always gave me nice hotels. I was turning to carry my bag downstairs, and I opened my door. As I stepped out, Goten passed in the hall, a gigantic sucker in his mouth and a candy bar in the other hand. He glanced at me as he passed, his eyes strangely remote, and I sighed softly. He looked cute. Yep, there comes the depression again.
I had spent the last five days pulling all but all-nighters in the lab, taking every meal but occasionally breakfast there, and taking my breaks standing by the window in thought. Goten hadn't come near me that entire time, nor when I made the trip to my room in the dark.
When Goku was bored he often came into the lab and talked to Bulma, but the technicians had forbidden him to touch anything, and they were so vicious that neither he nor Kaa-san had tried to dissuade them. I wondered if it had stemmed from a previous incident. Goku, trying to be nice, had told me I looked stressed and suggested I go spar with Goten. I suppose he ppicked it up when I only turned away at the mention of his son's name. Maybe Kaa-san took him aside and mentioned we fought. But either way, the only real break I had was when he asked if I'd spar with him, and I had accepted. Got kicked up.
Goku loved the gravity room. I suspected he often ate his meals in there, since a reinforced refrigerator had been installed. He acted like he was born in increased gravity. Well, he was, but that's beside the point.
But now, I laid my bag on the chair near the door and went into the lab, beginning to despise the familiar smells. I had periods when I either hated or loved the lab. I'm not sure what I was feeling now. Kaa-san was at a workstation, going over my materials.
"What's the verdict, Mama?"
"I'm really impressed," she said, one hand parked on her hip, not bothering to glance at me. "You did good work. You know, you didn't have to put in the long hours, though. You could have had an assistant."
"It's okay," I said with a shrug. "I didn't mind."
"I'll remember that next time." She glanced at me now with slightly narrowed eyes filled with laughter.
"Alright, well, right now I have to go." I hugged her and picked up my glasses from beside the computer. I hated them but they often prevented bad headaches. Also, my mother approved of them to go with my "corporate image."
Yep, that's me. The Corporate Saiyan. Fuuuuck that!
"Dress nice," she told me, tugging at my gloves. "Speak clearly. Don't fret, you're good at this. Look at them and you'll keep their attention. You're good like that."
"Wakarimashita, Kaa-san." I twirled my glasses between my fingers as I walked out of the lab. I passed Goku in the hall. "Bai Goku-san."
"Oh, you're leaving now? Have a good trip, Trunks." He waved slightly as I walked to the door.
My models had been loaded into the car, and I placed my glasses in my bag, picking it up and looking around. Something-
Ah. There it was. Running footsteps. My sister ran down the hall, and jumped into my arms. "O-nii-chan, come home soon! Buy me something! Do good!"
"I'll follow your example, Imouto-chan. I'm glad you didn't forget to say goodbye." Bra pulled back to look at me, and leaned close to whisper.
"I told Goten-kun you were leaving and he didn't say anything. Did he already say goodbye to you?" Bra looked up at me wide blue eyes. She was too innocent. You'd think Tou-san would have cured her of that. She was young, though.
"Yeah," I said, a lump catching in my throat. "But, you know what? I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to him. Do you think you do me a favor and go say goodbye for me? I'll get you something extra special if you do."
"Okay!" She grinned and hugged me one last time as I set her onto the floor.
It was a short drive to the airport on the outskirts of the city, and the flight was only about forty-five minutes long. I was, of course, met be a car, and they took me to my hotel. I only spent a little while there, getting ready for the first day of the convention, which was the rather boring opening ceremonies and maybe an hour to do things in.
I took a while setting up everything I had for maximum visibility, and then went to the audience chamber. I watched idly. I had been to enough of these to predict the theme already. There was a woman who came up onto the stage. She looked a lot like Chichi-san, with rather large dark eyes and shiny shoulder-length hair up in simple barrettes on the sides, like Chichi had worn as well, very briefly. That made me think of Goten. Only she wasn't like Chichi, she had a bubbly personality like that Paresu chick that was a class behind me, in Goten's class, who liked him.
I didn't notice I was glowering and lost in my own thoughts until I felt a tap on my shoulder and realized that everyone around me was starting to get up. "Hello?"
"Uhn?" I glanced up, and took my glasses off as my eyes suddenly felt fuzzy. "I'm sorry, is something the matter?"
"I was going to ask you, sir; you're scaring people." There were indeed people looking at me, I noticed, as my gaze turned back to the Chichi-esque woman who had tapped my shoulder. Up close she reminded me more of Paresu than Chichi. Maybe a little like Videl in face shape, but her eyes were brown and not that heavenly shade of dark like Goten's.
"I've been assigned to work near you. You're Trunks Briefs?"
"Yeah, uhm.. nice to meet you." I took her business card after I bowed to her, and studied it for a moment before putting it into my wallet as was proper before returning one.
"I heard a little bit already on some of the projects Capsule Corporation was planning on putting forth this year. Your projections look pretty good if a little overambitious. Would you mind telling me a little about....?"
The conversation went on as we made our way to our project areas. I bet I was a little secretive when it came to my 'baby,' but I had found that most people were. The only bad part of talking with the woman was that she kept distracting me with her light laughter and wide dark blinks, making me think of Goten and feel guilty.
I suppose she felt my change in mood, and I presented my project a little dully at first. I glanced aside at her, over the heads of my audience, and she gave me a thumbs up from where she was standing, between presentation times. I realized that it was something I needed to think of later, not now.
I paused and took a deep breath, seeing that my crowd was shrinking somewhat. "You know what, folks? Let's depart from the routine, and I'm going to show you how all of this junk on this table here really works." I felt more confident talking about that. "I'll show you how our performance is increased, and how we've modified our circuit board- already copyrighted, so don't get all sneaky. Here inside this panel I've cracked open we have the three main information modules....."

I lay back on my bed, watching a movie on TV. It was a love story with lots of sword fighting. Swords are very cool, and don't let your mother tell you differently. I sat up during the duels, moving my right hand slightly with their thrusts, an unconscious habit I'd picked up.
I was just in the middle of a great-looking finishing thrust as the phone rang. I muted the TV and picked it up, tossing it lightly to my other hand before raising it to my face as the guy on TV had done. "Yeah, 'ello?" Impolite. "Moshi moshi?"
"Trunks, it's me." My mother's supremely self-confident and cutting voice was obvious anywhere. "How is the convention going?"
"Oi, Kaa-san. What's up? I'm doing pretty good."
"What's the word?" She was asking what the other corporate representatives were saying about Capsule Corp. this year.
"They say we're..." I frowned as I pulled the words from my memory. "...Overambitious this year."
"Oh?"
"Well, they're saying that our expectations exceed theirs at the very least. They're wondering if we're holding something back or if our last hiring turn took more people than we said we did. I think they'll be very impressed if we come through with two-thirds of what we say we will." I flipped my remote and parried.
"I see." There was background noise.
"What's up there, Kaa-san?"
"We're having dinner. You're on speakerphone. Say hi to Trunks, guys."
My sister's high voice floated above two or three male murmurs and a feminine greeting from my grandmother, and from Videl.
"Sounds like the whole family," I said. "Lucky. The air's broke here. It's stuck on."
"Better than stuck off," Gohan said. His voice was easy to recognize. Somehow more masculine than his father's, but still the same.
"Oi, Trunks, my mouth was full!"
"Hi Pan. There's this woman in the station next to mine that's about to quit her job and show up at our door if I present my findings again. She says Dynamo Industries is on our tail with the Symmetry Circuit we have on the board-"
"I'll move it up on the calendar, then," Kaa-san murmured between bites.
"Your friend works for Dynamo Industries, and she's telling you stuff?" Gohan sounded faintly surprised. He took an interest in the workings of Capsule Corp. "Aren't you guys bitter rivals?"
"Yeah well," I shrugged, knowing he couldn't see it. "They dominate the con circuit this year. I think we're seeing a step up-"
"I'll put them at the top of my "People to Assassinate" list then," My mother said, jokingly. I heard a pause in the clinking of dishes that might have been Goku pausing to look at her for a moment.
"Would ya let me finish, Kaa-san? I said I think we're seeing a step up in their promotion this year. But with the history of their media changes in mind, this movement of Dynamo's is likely to turn up as less than Dynamite."
I rolled my eyes as several people groaned. It was interrupted by an intelligent question -was there any other kind?- from Gohan. "You've been to their displays, haven't you? Aren't you worried at all about anything they're up to this year?"
"Dynamo is an abysmal annual dissapointment," I informed him. "They're not- Strike out!" The sword went all the way through.
"What??" There was a major silence on the other end.
"Sorry, I'll turn the TV off now." I switched channels instead. "But the one I'd look out for InterTech this season."
"Why them?" My mother asked, restoring normality with her voice.
"If they make it through the season with a seventy-five percent sales rate, I think they'll gear up for their next big project within two weeks, if they can pull that together. Next season they're going to come back at least half again the size they are."
"What do they have on the board?" My mother asked calm thoughtful tones, after pausing to swallow.
"They're very hush-hush this week. Their displays are what I call kiddie toys, different trips on things Capsule Corp. stopped thinking about years ago. Whatever they have as a major project, they must be thinking they're pretty clever. Never mind with a corporation that size, it's going to be on the streets at least a month before they're fully prepared anyway."
"I see. Thanks, son. Keep careful notes, will you?"
"Sure...." I paused, and turned off the TV, my voice feeling deeper as I felt a little more serious. "Is... uhm, is Goten around?"
There was a brief pause as there was movement in the room at the other end. After a few moments there was a click of a receiver being picked up. "Trunks?"
"Goten? Speaker off?"
There was a pause on the other end as I heard squeaky hinges open and shut. "Yeah, I guess." He sounded a bit sulky.
"Are you still angry with me?" I asked, feeling suddenly humble speaking to him. There was silence, and I wanted to hear his voice badly for a moment. "I've been thinking about you a lot since I got here."
"Feeling guilty?" He asked after a moment. I was unsure whether or not it was really a question. He knew me well, either way.
"Yes," I said, allowing myself a smile. Funny, I hadn't heard the speakerphone go off... "And still a little mad."
"Yeah..." At last he sounded a little humble as well. I had figured that after about three days in different environments, we would be ready to apologize. "Am I following your timetable?"
It was a joke he had come up with in a science class we shared a while ago. It pointed to the fact that I actually did my homework. "Yeah," I told him, laying back on my bed.
"Ah.."
"Listen..." I began, and took a breath when he was silent. "I can't say that I understand a hundred percent what was making you angry, but I want to, y'know?"
He made a sound of acknowledgement as I struggled for the rest.
"And I want you to know that whatever it was, and however badly I was feeling, I shouldn't have said what I said to you, and I really regret it. I'm sorry, and I want you to forgive me. Forget it ever happened if possible, but it's not likely since this is the only time I can recall where I apologized first, and I know you're not likely to forget it...."
I was interrupted by low chuckling on his part. Even though I was somewhat comforted by the low throaty sound, the relaxed quality of it, even though his words couldn't leave my mind in peace, and hadn't in the past... ever since he had said it. They stuck in me as he was silent for a long moment, a time that seemed like eternity.
"Trunks?" He said it as though he felt he had to catch my attention, even though we were both silent. "You turn the TV off?"
"A long time ago," I told him. "You're the only thing on my mind now."
"Good. That's rare."
"No it's not," I told him. "For the past four months everything has been an unpleasant distraction from you."
"Do you mean that?"
"Did I say it?"
"It doesn't feel like it sometimes. I feel..." he made an inarticulate sound.
"What?" I prodded.
"I just feel pushed aside sometimes."
"How? Whatever it is, I'll fix it," I promised, thinking back.
"I know you're not really pushing me aside," Goten said, sounding frustrated. "But it feels so much like you're just concentrating on the idea of..." I could almost hear, almost smell him blush. "Being with me rather than.. being with me."
"I don't understand," I told him quite honestly.
"Listen, I know you still think about your father a lot. There's one difference that's coming between us. I can tell when I look at you sometimes, that you're still angry with him, and you're still upset over him being gone. I feel a lot better about my mom now, but it all still weighs on you. Being a mature person doesn't mean clinging to every emotion until it destroys you."
"You don't know what you're talking about," I told him, taking another breath to start my argument. "I-"
"See? You're so defensive when someone speaks of him... especially me." There was a strange yearning in his voice. "Do I make you think of him?"
"No.." I said softly. "You're just so close to me, and..."
"Yeah.." Goten took a breath. "Okay. And another is the parents we're currently stuck with..."
He was talking about his father again. "Okay, Goten, I really don't think your family is stupid, and I'm not sure where you got that."
He actually laughed. "No, I said that at first because I was confused, and after that because I felt good when I saw how upset it made you. I was really really angry." That last comment was unnecessary if he wanted to see me upset.
"Okay, well, I'll admit then that I wanted to hurt your feelings when you brought up my father."
"Quite an admission from you, Trunks-kun." He had paused. "Where's your pride?"
"Is that some kind of joke...?" I rumbled, and he laughed again.
"Alright, then I'll admit I feel stupid around you most of the time anyway."
"And I'll admit that..." I paused. "What can I admit? Alright. I'll admit that I was angry about what you said to your father earlier. I was... disgusted, is the word. I guess it was just 'cause I was getting all excited for nothing."
"See what I mean? You're so set on telling them right away.... you haven't taken the time to really sit with me and see me since the idea came to you...."
"Since before the wedding," I inferred. I thought about it for a long moment. "Kami..."
"Can you see us holding everything up like that? I couldn't have done that."
"When it came down to it, I guess I couldn't either, or I would have pressed you to. Have I really been so inconsiderate, Go-chan?" I found that same yearning tone in my voice I had heard from him earlier.
"No, you're wonderful," he said softly.
"I'm sorry," I replied. "I guess it's something else to think about too, that I should have enjoyed everything without thinking about it, because what if we didn't get the chance again?" I was suddenly glad I was lying down. "What if they said-"
"You're so damn fatalistic..." Goten groused.
"Alright, from now on, if I start on that then you can hit me without warning. You're officially authorized. Call it a royal decree."
"A royal decree? Yeah, I can see that going over really well in conventional circumstances. Your mother and Bra- 'You know you're not allowed to have cookies before dinner.' and Bra issue a royal decree-"
"Cut it out, Goten. You're goofy," I informed him, but I was smiling to myself and I think he could tell."
"And I'll admit something to you too," Goten said, going soft all of a sudden. "When I said I had never wanted to be with you in the first place... I mean... you know. It was a lie. Even then, the first time we were -uhm, together..." He took a breath. "I wanted it. But later on I was just-"
"I know," I told him, understanding well. "I was a little frightened too. But it felt right. In the lab that night when I asked why we were even together in the first place... that hurt me when I said it. I want to be with you more than anything, Goten." I felt a little unsure as I received silence from him. "And no matter how stubborn and emotionally clumsy, not to mention ignorant I can get, I still love you and every day I'm always glad that I have you in my life."
There was a sudden airy sound from the other end, and for a moment I thought he was crying and felt awkward. Goten made a questioning sound though, and I wondered.... who was sniffling?
"It's so beautiful! I'm sorry, I can't be quiet anymore!" I cringed on seven different levels as I heard my grandmother exclaim, "I'm sorry, Bulma dear! They're just too precious!" and sob slightly.
"I don't understand what everyone thinks is so weird? What, don't people do that kind of thing anyway? Am I the only one who saw it coming?"
I tried to swallow, but sat up too fast and choked, coughing. I think I was echoing goten on the other end. "Who's listening?!"
My demand was met with voice after voice murmuring "Me." Pan and Bra giggled somewhere just on the edge of hearing. "O-nii-chan sounds mushy!"
"Trunks tou O-ji-chan!" Pan exclaimed.
"Everybody! Get the hell off!!" I heard Goten yell, mouth away from the phone. "I love you too, Trunks, but right now I have to go throw some ki blasts." The phone clicked down and I punchedthe pillow in frustration.

As I came home, there was really no one around. Of course, no one needed to ask me any questons, now did they? I stacked the overused projects in the front, tired of looking at them. They were no longer my responsibility. I was in Tinkering, not Deployment. As I turned, I met face-to-face with my mother and Goku.
"Trunks!" My stepfather looked happy as usual. "We were coming to say welcome home!"
My mother came and hugged me, and then stepped back with her arms folded. "Trunks..."
Here we go-
"Why didn't you tell us? We could have worked something out."
"Heh. They weren't joking after all..."
"I figured you would flip. Didn't you want grandkids or something?" I sounded a lot more sure than I felt."
"Bra can give me grandkids!"
"Not that you'll ever look old enough to be a grandmother," Goku pointed out; Funny, and probably what she'd say next.
"You think so?" She blushed slightly.
"Anyway..." I said.
"Anyway... I just want to know what's going on in my son's life... is that so bad? I honestly don't care if you love Goten."
"Really?" I asked, smiling at her hopefully.
"It's okay, Trunks. Besides, it's a little late now to change your mind isn't it? I knew when I heard your heartfelt decree over the phone that I couldn't do anything about it." I blushed, but it was true.
"Really? That's it?"
Kaa-san frowned. "Well, no, but-"
"Great, then I need to go see someone." I could sense him, and I headed for the stairs, feeling the odd double life-force of myself and him, the way he sounded in the back of my head like an additional pulse, or two sets of thoughts would sound to one head. I opened the door to my room, and found him in bed, naked, asleep.
I moved over and onto the bed, reminded of when we first were together. I fit myself into him gently, smiling at his peaceful face. I leaned over him, kissed him gently, feeling him purse his lips and part them without resistance. I moved into a real kiss, my tongue darting into his mouth to taste him, caressing the inside of his mouth gently. Goten sighed softly, his breath folding over me, feeling natural, as his hands came up between us.
"Wake up, sweet Goten..." my voice came out a little low, but then, he had that effect on me. I pulled back and brushed his wayward hair away from his face, smiling softly as his too-dark eyes opened into mine. He saw my smile and held onto me tighter, seeming to take a moment just looking at me. "Miss me?"
"Like a constant ache," he said, and I chose to interpret that positively.
"You were waiting for me?"
"Yeah..." he said sheepishly. He sat up slightly, the blanket tumbling down to his waist, revealing his perfect.. structure.
"I take it you're in the mood for love?" I said, fingers walking up his washboard stomach slowly.
Goten slapped my hands off, blushing. "No! Not anymore!"
"Okay..." I said, turning away. "Maybe I'll go to the lab..."
"You're not going to that damn lab for a long time, if I have to break your arms and legs!" Goten insisted, almost angrily.
I turned my head slightly, smirking from the corner of my eye.
Goten grunted slightly as he moved to pull the blankets closer to him. "You look like Vegeta when you do that."
"Well, I am his son," I said, smiling a bit at Goten's dark eyes, which reflected surprise and disbelief, and at last a slow sweet pleasure.
"Yeah...... I guess you are," he said slowly, smiling at me with those unreadable eyes.
"Hm." I put my hands behind my head as Goten laid down next to me. "I guess I am," I mused.

*~*~*~*~ Oshimai
Geez.... ::has no comment:: -_-*